By PAUL O’DONOGHUE, Senior Correspondent
AN estimated $750 billion in illicit funds flowed through the financial system in Europe in 2023, according to a new study.
The finding comes from a report by Nasdaq Verafin, a Canada-based company which provides fincrime technology such as fraud detection software. It said the dirty cash is equivalent to 2.3% of Europe’s GDP.
The report also found that, globally, $3.1 trillion was laundered in 2023. It said this meant that, “Europe represents nearly a quarter of the total flow of illicit funds globally”. This is despite the fact that Europe has under 10% of the global population.
The study classed ‘Europe’ as the European Union (EU), the United Kingdom (UK) and Norway.
Europe money laundering and fincrime activity
Nasdaq Verafin said its ‘Financial Crime Insights: Europe’ calculated the $750 billion figure by estimating a variety of financial crime. These included:
- $178.0 billion in drug trafficking activity
- $82.2 billion in human trafficking activity
- $2.7 billion in terrorist financing activity
- $487.2 billion in ‘other’ illicit activity, including “organized crime, fraud, corruption”.
“Criminals are not bound by banks, borders, or regulations,” said Stephanie Champion, Executive Vice President and Head of Nasdaq Verafin. “By aligning on shared goals, we can strengthen economies and safeguard the financial system from harm.”
She added that the report “highlights the need for unified action to address both domestic and cross-border risks.”
The report said the figures show the scale that money laundering undermines economic stability in Europe. Illicit activities such as human trafficking, fraud, elder exploitation, and terrorist financing have far-reaching societal and financial impacts. It also identifies key priorities for financial crime prevention, including increased collaboration, cross-sector partnerships, and the adoption of advanced technology.
Nasdaq Verafin produces AI-driven tools to help banks detect fraud, automate compliance, and improve anti-money laundering (AML) efforts.
The company produced the report in collaboration with Celent Research and Oliver Wyman. The full findings are available [HERE].
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