Friday, September 18, 2009

Money money money

Post # 501...oh boy! Let's get cracking. Nothing like talking about money, right?

When I was really young, the term Money Laundering didn't quite make sense to me. Sounded like one's money was scheduled for laundry day or something. Back then there were so many words that didn't quite make sense, but all that's changed now. Money laundering makes total sense.

You may have noticed how Cayman has such a bad rap when it comes to money laundering? Any prime time show out there that involves drug dealers, gangs or bad guys wanting to hide their moolah, will inevitably mention that their money is parked in the Cayman Islands, notorious for its haven for money launders. But times are a changing. Cayman has been trying very hard to rid itself of this image. Regulations and strict compliance measures have been making the rounds for a while and Cayman now makes accountability mandatory to those wanting to park their monetary funds on island. So, how did this bad rap get started...?

You can bet one way was this...I was watching a documentary on how Marijuana was smuggled into San Francisco in epic proportions about 20 years ago. The mastermind behind this admitted that the money (millions every month) made off of trafficking and selling off this pot was easily moved to the Cayman Islands, far from the reach of Uncle Sam. I believe his exact words were: You could walk into Cayman with suitcases loaded with money and they just didn't care.

Tsk tsk Cayman, you sure set yourself up for a big fall. But you're recovering, slowly and surely you are working hard to rid yourself of the image that you are aiding and abiding the bad boys. I've noticed most shows now barely mention Cayman when it comes to money laundering, they've moved on to other offshore jurisdictions, like the Bahamas...or even Belize. They've been doing their research, and eventually this will pay off. It may take a while, but you'll get there.

2 comments:

MarkD60 said...

I don't believe anything I see on American TV. Less than a year ago, the US investigated Cayman, and found the banking system is more regulated than the American system. It doesn't matter, the US needs someone to blame.

Chief Lymer said...

It's a bit hypocritial really. A lot of the people criticising the Caymans liked to use it to keep their freshly cleaned cash - now it's not kosher to have any money al of a sudden Cayman's name is mud.

If it is wrong to take laundered money it should always have been wrong, not just now.