Change Bureaus...

[chazcarbone]

hello there..

as i understand, act of concealing money is different than that of laundering it, though many make the mistake of putting both actions under the term of laundering.

so if changing large amounts of money in change beureaus, would that constitute any form of crime?

[aryels]

generally, exchanging currencies at change bureaus is not a crime. It is the normal way of many visitors and tourists to exchange the currency of their homeland, or to cash travelers' checks, for currency accepted by that State.

Concealing money (or assets)--- such as hiding money in offshore bank accounts, or by bookkeeping records intended to make the money "disappear"---could cause suspicion of tax evasion.

[chazcarbone]

[QUOTE=aryels]generally, exchanging currencies at change bureaus is not a crime. It is the normal way of many visitors and tourists to exchange the currency of their homeland, or to cash travelers' checks, for currency accepted by that State.

QUOTE]

ok but would exchanging, lets say, $1,000,000 be problematic?

[aryels]

I suppose it might raise some questions as to why someone wants to exchange that amount of currency. However, when considering international business and trade, exchanging $1 million is not that big of a deal.

Importers commonly use exchange banks to exchange large amounts of currency and issue checks to purchase goods from other countries.

[chazcarbone]

I suppose it might raise some questions as to why someone wants to exchange that amount of currency. However, when considering international business and trade, exchanging $1 million is not that big of a deal.

Importers commonly use exchange banks to exchange large amounts of currency and issue checks to purchase goods from other countries.

yes true..
but would it be totally strange to walk into a bank with, lets say, 1 million dollars in CASH?

i do realize those banks may ask for i.d and thats understandable.
but as far as the legalities concerned, one would assume the country's IRS/customs would probably be suspicious of such transaction??

the key issue is wether or not one would have to prove his/her source of those funds. and if the source of funds isnt revealed, would that constitute some sort of crime???

[aryels]

since I don't work at an exchange bank, I cannot answer for bank policies. I would guess, however, that the very first step would be to verify that the money is not counterfeit.

You might possibly have to answer questions about whether the money was received as ransom money or intended as ransom money. You might also have to answer questions such as if the money is payment for illegal drug trade, payment for a hitman, a donation to a terrorist organization, acquired through racketeering, or intended for some other illegal business.

I'm not sure who would respond to reports raised in international settings. Maybe InterPol?

[knot]

yes true..
but would it be totally strange to walk into a bank with, lets say, 1 million dollars in CASH?

i do realize those banks may ask for i.d and thats understandable.
but as far as the legalities concerned, one would assume the country's IRS/customs would probably be suspicious of such transaction??

the key issue is wether or not one would have to prove his/her source of those funds. and if the source of funds isnt revealed, would that constitute some sort of crime???

That would not CONSTITUTE a crime...But!
In America, you will not walk into a bank with that sum amount and get it exchanged without a relationship with the establishment. The fed Will be notified and the money must stay there, that is if you intend on going thru with it? anything over 5000 dollar cash transactions are logged and reported! A simple ID...Wont work

[chazcarbone]

That would not CONSTITUTE a crime...But!
In America, you will not walk into a bank with that sum amount and get it exchanged without a relationship with the establishment. The fed Will be notified and the money must stay there, that is if you intend on going thru with it? anything over 5000 dollar cash transactions are logged and reported! A simple ID...Wont work

you mean to tell me that the bank will notify the feds who will then FREEZE those funds until sufficient proof of funds is shown???

[aryels]

I know that knot is mentioning Suspicious Activity Reports which banks are required to make for any transactions at $5 K and $25 K. Generally this relates to deposits, withdrawals and transfers...but I suppose that it might include the transaction of exchanging money.
http://www.ffiec.gov/bsa_aml_infobas..._BSA_Reg_2.pdf

And although I am unaware of a bank freezing cash until knowing where it came from, I cannot say whether a bank would do that. In some countries there is probably the possibility that the cash could be seized. And since I don't know if you are talking about exchanging foreign currency at a US bank, or exchanging US currency at a foreign bank, I won't bother searching for what I think might be the accurate information. I suppose one of the first concerns might be that the $1 M cash was obtained through a bank robbery.

I could foresee that a bank might suggest opening an account as a requirement for exchanging that large of a sum of money. Otherwise, the bank would probably charge a fee.

[chazcarbone]

exchanging u.s dollars into local currenty at a european bank..
thanks for the info... i guess a lawyer at the country where the exchange would take place would be the best answer for this topic.

[chazcarbone]

any more feedback from anybody?