Treasury Rallies Banks & Law Enforcement to Target Money Laundering Networks

Key Takeaways

• Targeting Chinese Money Laundering Networks: Treasury convened banks and law enforcement to focus on disrupting Chinese money laundering networks that facilitate transnational crime and threaten U.S. financial security.
• $7.1 Billion in Suspected Activity: Since FinCEN’s August advisory, more than 500 Suspicious Activity Reports have flagged approximately $7.1 billion in suspected CMLN-related transactions between 2018 and 2025.
• Public-Private Coordination: The FinCEN Exchange reinforced the central role financial institutions play in detecting and reporting complex cross-border laundering activity.
• BSA Data in the Spotlight: Treasury urged firms to continue strengthening Bank Secrecy Act reporting as a critical tool for identifying and dismantling illicit networks.
• Ongoing International Engagement: Treasury said it will continue engaging with Chinese authorities while advancing domestic and global partnerships to counter illicit finance.

Deep Dive

Treasury officials brought banks and law enforcement into the same room this week with a message that Chinese money laundering networks remain a persistent and deeply embedded threat to the U.S. financial system and that disrupting them depends on tighter, faster coordination between the public and private sectors.

The meeting took place under the banner of a FinCEN Exchange, a public-private partnership forum hosted by the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. The session convened global financial institutions, federal law enforcement agencies, and senior Treasury officials to focus on cutting off individual Chinese money launderers from access to U.S. and international financial channels.

Treasury framed the effort as both a financial crime and national security priority. “Malicious Chinese individuals engaged in money laundering pose one of the most significant threats facing the U.S. financial system,” said Andrea Gacki, director of FinCEN. She warned that these actors routinely launder proceeds for transnational criminal organizations, including Mexico-based drug cartels, with consequences that ripple far beyond illicit finance.

The Exchange builds on FinCEN’s August advisory and financial trend analysis on Chinese money laundering networks. Since that publication, FinCEN has received more than 500 Suspicious Activity Reports tied to the advisory’s key terminology. Those filings describe roughly $7.1 billion in suspected CMLN-related transactions between December 2018 and November 2025, underscoring what Treasury officials described as a sustained and evolving threat rather than a one-off surge.

During the session, FinCEN shared financial intelligence directly with participating institutions, stressing the unique vantage point banks have in detecting laundering patterns that span jurisdictions and payment systems. Officials also highlighted the importance of Bank Secrecy Act data, encouraging firms to continue strengthening their reporting and monitoring as laundering techniques adapt.

Treasury said it will continue engaging with the People’s Republic of China as part of broader efforts to combat illicit finance, while pressing ahead with domestic and international partnerships aimed at turning intelligence and reporting into concrete disruption.

For regulators, law enforcement, and financial institutions alike, the takeaway from the Exchange was straightforward. The data already points to the problem, the networks remain active, and coordinated action across sectors is essential to cutting off their access to the global financial system.

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