Mody Seminar: Illicit Finance

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

Illicit finance is a multi-trillion dollar problem that threatens the global financial system and undermines national security and human rights in countries around the globe. This course will examine the vexing phenomenon of illicit financial flows (IFFs) and the need for a multi-pronged and international effort to tackle the problem. It will focus on the sources of IFFs (such as corruption, environmental crime, looting of antiquities) and how illicit funds are transferred or laundered across borders and ultimately used (for terrorist financing, for instance, or investment in assets such as real estate). In particular, the course will explore the role of illicit finance in sustaining kleptocracies, enabling mass atrocities, and impeding development. The course will be taught from a practitioner’s perspective with frequent guest lecturers and include real-world case studies on hot topics in illicit finance such as the role of professional enablers and secrecy jurisdictions; new payment methods such as cryptocurrencies; the latest techniques in sanctions evasion, and how illicit finance interacts with economic statecraft, export controls, and the role of the U.S. dollar in global finance. Most importantly, it will delve into the tools that governments, international bodies, and the private sector can use to combat illicit finance—and how such tools can be improved. Tracking dirty money and fighting financial crime has become an increasingly urgent priority in both the public and private sectors; the course will provide students with a hands-on, multidisciplinary introduction to this rapidly growing field.