Press. voanews.com
The U.S. Treasury is advising banks to be on the lookout for suspicious
financial activity involving corrupt Venezuelan officials as the Trump
administration tightens its financial noose around President Nicolas Maduro's
embattled socialist government.
Wednesday's advisory by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network asks
banks to keep watch for Venezuelan government contracts, wire transfers from
shell companies, and real estate purchases in south Florida and Houston by
senior Venezuelan officials, their families or associates. It said the advisory
arose out of concern expressed by financial institutions that transactions
involving state-owned enterprises were being used to launder kickbacks and
bribes.
U.S. officials fear that endemic corruption will take an additional toll
on Venezuelans already struggling with triple-digit inflation and widespread
shortages amid a tense political standoff aggravated by Maduro's decision to
rewrite the constitution in the face of months of deadly protests.
Last month, the Trump administration slapped sanctions on Venezuela for
Maduro's decision to go forward with his plans to consolidate power. The
actions ban investors from buying the nation's debt and prevents U.S.-based
Citgo, a subsidiary of the state-owned oil company, from sending badly needed
dollar dividends back to Venezuela.
"Not all transactions involving Venezuela involve corruption, but,
particularly now, during a period of turmoil in that country, financial
institutions need to continue their vigilance to help identify and stop the
flow of corrupt proceeds and guard against money laundering and other illicit
financial activity," said acting FinCEN Director Jamal El-Hindi.
Maduro has accused the U.S. of trying to impose a financial
"blockade" on Venezuela after the opposition-led protests failed to
oust him from power. Even before the recent round of sanctions, many Wall
Street banks like Citibank and Credit Suisse that used to collect large fees
serving Venezuela's financial needs stopped doing business with the government,
fearing legal action or damage to their reputations.
Wednesday's action lists several red flags to assist banks in identifying
suspected schemes. They include any transactions involving government contracts
payable directly to personal accounts, hard-to-identify trading companies or
products charged at substantially higher prices than market rates.
It also warns about real estate purchases — primarily in south Florida
and the Houston area — involving current or former Venezuelan government
officials, family members or associates that are not commensurate with their
official salaries.
The U.S. over the past year has sanctioned dozens of Venezuelan
officials, including Maduro himself, for a variety of alleged offenses
including drug trafficking and human rights abuses. Among the state-owned
enterprises referenced in recent sanctions are the nation's electricity and
telephone companies as well as the foreign trade bank and foreign currency
exchange commission that provides U.S. dollars to select businesses and
individuals at a highly favorable exchange rate that most Venezuelans can't
access due to strict currency controls