GRC Report Staff

The shadow of financial crime looms larger than ever over Europe, as a new special edition of the 2024 Global Financial Crime Report sheds light on the vast scale of illicit activity across the region. This report dives deep into the financial crime landscape of Europe, with a specific focus on the European Union (EU), the United Kingdom (UK), and the Nordic countries. The findings paint a sobering picture of the challenges ahead, with billions of dollars flowing through illicit channels that pose a significant threat to both financial institutions and society as a whole.

Ireland’s privacy watchdog has questions, and they’re pointed squarely at Elon Musk’s X. On Thursday, the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) announced the launch of a formal inquiry into X Internet Unlimited Company (XIUC), the newly named data controller for X’s EU user base. The central issue? Whether publicly accessible posts by European users have been quietly fed into the company’s generative AI system, Grok, without proper legal basis.

Italy’s Personal Data Protection Authority (Garante) has launched an investigation into Lusha Systems, a US-based company that’s no stranger to controversy in the world of online data. Known for selling “enriched” contact details, including email addresses and phone numbers, Lusha’s services are accessible to users in Italy, though it seems some of the data within its platform might not be as straightforward as one would hope.

As Klaas Knot prepared to deliver his final speech at the Eurofi conference in Warsaw, his message was that in times of uncertainty, resilience and cooperation are key to navigating the unpredictable, resonant words in today's dynamic environment. Reflecting on his years as President of De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), Knot shared his thoughts on the evolving financial landscape, the importance of robust policies, and the need for global collaboration to safeguard long-term stability.

The Bundeskartellamt, the country’s competition watchdog, has raised serious concerns over Vodafone and its subsidiary Vantage Towers for allegedly obstructing 1&1’s attempt to enter the market as a fourth mobile operator. The issue revolves around significant delays in providing antenna sites to 1&1—delays that, according to the Bundeskartellamt’s preliminary findings, are having a severe impact on 1&1’s ability to compete.

Jemena, a player in Australia’s energy sector, and its four subsidiaries have been ordered to pay a $5.5 million penalty following their breach of the National Gas Rules, as determined by an Australian Federal Court. The breaches, which occurred between March 1, 2019, and February 22, 2022, involved failing to properly calculate Auction Quantity Limits (AQLs) as part of the Day Ahead Auction (DAA) process, a critical mechanism for allocating pipeline capacity in Australia.

The New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) has reached a $40 million settlement with Block, Inc., the parent company of Cash App, following an investigation into significant failures in its anti-money laundering (AML) program and virtual currency compliance. The settlement is a response to gaps in Block’s compliance measures, including inadequate customer identification procedures and poor transaction monitoring that exposed the company to greater money-laundering risks.