Mexico City, February 12 (EFE).- United States Treasury Department officialswho visited Mexico this weekend, called the US financial institutions so that “voluntarily increase cross-border exchange of information” with Mexican banks for greater collaboration in the discovery and prevention of financial crimes.
In a statement issued this Monday, the Treasury Department recalled that the officials were in Mexico on February 8 and 9 to meet with their counterparts from the Government of Mexico and representatives of the US and Mexican financial sector, to deepen the collaboration in matters of illicit financing.
The visit occurred after the secretary Janet Yellen will pass through Mexico in December 2023, where he promised that the Treasury Department “will use every tool at its disposal to disrupt drug traffickers' ability to sell this poison in the US.”
The Treasury Department reported that on February 8, officials from the Financial Crimes Network jointly led a panel on illicit financing with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and the Banking, Securities and Savings Unit, Mexican banking and stock market regulator, both dependent on the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) of the Government of Mexico.
The dialogue included debates on cross-border financial crimes, such as those that involve the laundering of income related to trafficking in fentanyl precursors, human trafficking, fraud and corruption, carried out by transnational criminal organizations.
While on February 9, the Treasury's Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes Office, in collaboration with the SHCPconvened the 19th bilateral public and private banking working group, to bring together institutions financial institutions and legislators, regulators and supervisory authorities of both countries in order to advance bilateral strategic priorities to counter illicit finance.
At this meeting, in addition to calling the US financial institutions to voluntarily increase the cross border exchange of information with Mexican banks, they also discussed how authorities can share more operational information with financial institutions in both countries to face common threats, such as illicit finances related to fentanyl trafficking and human trafficking.
On February 8, the advisor of White House Homeland SecurityElizabeth Sherwood-Randall, said that North America must jointly combat the trafficking of fentanyl, other drugs and weapons before it becomes a major crisis, arguing that it is not just a problem for the United States.
“Combating the scourge of fentanyl is not just a threat in North America, but for all of us. We must not wait for it to become a major crisis in our homes, communities and countries”expressed Sherwood-Randall at the fourth meeting of the Trilateral Committee to combat drug and arms trafficking held in Mexico City.
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