Book Description
Seasoned investigative journalist and financial expert Nick Kochan takes readers deep inside the world of money laundering — a highly sophisticated, trillion-dollar, global business that poses a serious threat to Western economies. Profiling the perpetrators and the investigators, Kochan gives a mesmerizing inside look, explaining the methods employed by international criminals and terrorists to turn dirty money into untraceable wealth, as well as examining the methods and resources available to the law enforcement agencies in their fight to stop this corrupt financial pipeline. But is it a losing battle? Taking readers deep into the heart of the battle, The Washing Machine reveals that the dual forces of globalization and a lack of true international co-operation are playing directly into the hands of the criminals. In the hands of the author, the sophistication of the laundering schemes become understandable and fascinating, and the characters and stories woven into that explanation are vividly brought to life as they engage in operations on an often mind-blowing scale.
• With the investigative track record of the author and his financial expertise, The Washing Machine is a fascinating insight into — and explanation of — the murky world of illegal financial dealings and the sometimes heroic attempts to combat them.
• Money laundering is big business that should concern us all. More than US$25 billion is laundered every year in the U.S. drug industry alone. Add in the global value of smuggled arms, cigarettes, and people and that figure rises to US$2 trillion.
• Kochan points out that dirty money is not restricted to Mafia-style organized crime but also circulates throughout "legitimate" activities — like business and banking.
Synopsis
Finance Under Fire takes the reader deep inside the world of money laundering and shows it to be a highly sophisticated, global business worth trillions of dollars, and one that poses a serious and systemic threat to entire Western economies. Investigative journalist and financial expert Nick Kochan profiles the perpetrators and the investigators, and explains the methods employed by international criminals and terrorists to turn dirty money into untraceable wealth. The effort to stop this sinister financial pipeline is one of the highest profile law enforcement activities in the world at present. But is it a losing battle? Finance Under Fire reveals that the dual forces of globalisation and a lack of true international co-operation are playing directly into the hands of the criminals.
