Law Enforcement Support Overview
FinCEN was established in 1990 to assist federal, state, local, and international law enforcement agencies by analyzing the data collected under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA)—a cornerstone in the fight against money laundering. The BSA’s recordkeeping and reporting mandates create a detailed financial trail, allowing investigators to track illicit activities, individuals, and assets. Over time, FinCEN has honed its expertise in extracting valuable insights from the data, uncovering leads, and revealing hidden details within the complex structures of money laundering operations.
Criminals often employ a variety of methods to obscure the origin of illicit funds. These methods can range from simple transactions to highly sophisticated schemes designed to launder money across multiple channels. Illicit funds can flow through banks, check cashing businesses, money transmitters, casinos, and even international routes, ultimately becoming "clean" money. The tools employed by money launderers can include intricate financial transactions, web-based wire transfers, shell companies, and even physical methods like currency smuggling.
FinCEN’s role is to research and analyze this financial data, along with other critical intelligence, to support investigations into financial crimes. By linking to numerous databases, FinCEN holds one of the largest repositories of information accessible to law enforcement agencies across the nation. The agency takes great care in safeguarding the privacy of the data it collects, with stringent privacy protections embedded in every aspect of its operations and data management.
Additionally, FinCEN fosters a network for facilitating the exchange of information between agencies, helping them collaborate on investigations involving common investigative interests.
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