JUSTICES TO HEAR CHALLENGE TO MONEY-LAUNDERING LAW
The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to decide whether hiding the proceeds of an illegal activity, like a drug transaction, can be prosecuted as money laundering under federal law. This straightforward statutory question has roiled the lower federal courts, prompting a complaint by two conservative members of the federal appeals court in New Orleans earlier this year that the government’s expansive interpretation of the most commonly used money-laundering statute amounted to “prosecution run amok.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/16/washington/16scotus.html?ref=us

OFFSHORE: STORMY WATERS AHEAD
The Cayman Islands introduced electronic company registration earlier this year — in Arabic. The Caribbean jurisdiction’s move is a neat illustration of just how far offshore business has come in a few years, from being focused on one small island, to competing for business on a global scale. With billions of dollars of assets under administration in these centres and a growing unease in the global economy, the tougher, more sophisticated regulatory regimes of the leading offshore centres are about to face their greatest test since the post-Enron fallout.
http://www.legalweek.com/Articles/1059499/Offshore+Stormy+waters+ahead.html

MIFID GIVES MOST FIRMS A HEADACHE
Firms across Europe have just two weeks to comply with a law that aims to create a single European market for financial services. But most are struggling with the directive’s record-keeping duties, according to survey findings published today. The Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) harmonises the regulatory regime for investment services across the 30 member states of the European Economic Area (the 27 Member States of the EU plus Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein).
http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2007/10/17/mifid_record_keeping/

BRAZIL POLICE RAID CORPORATE OFFICES IN PROBE OF U.S. COMPANY
Brazilian federal police raided corporate offices around the country today as part of a probe into alleged evasion of import taxes by a U.S. company that sells computer network services and equipment.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aIdlj9aUsBDA&refer=latin_america

US SUBPRIME MORTGAGE CRISIS IMPACT ON HONG KONG ‘INSIGNIFICANT’
The US subprime mortgage market crisis in the US has not had any systemic implications for Hong Kong’s financial sector and its overall impact here has so far been insignificant, a treasury official said.
http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/10/17/afx4228449.html

NZ MOVES TO BLOCK TERROR MONEY ROUTES
Government agencies such as the Reserve Bank and the Securities Commission may take on a greater role in ensuring New Zealand is not being used by terror groups to launder money. The Government is preparing legislation to ensure this country meets its obligations as a member of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF).
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10469855

BAHRAIN TEAM SEEKS THE WINNING FORMULA IN US
A high-profile delegation will leave Bahrain for the United States in the next few days with the aim of enticing top US financial institutions to set up operations in the kingdom. Bahrain Financial Services Development (BFSD), a part of the Economic Development Board, and the Bankers’ Society of Bahrain (BSB) are co-hosting a reception on the sidelines of meetings between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in Washington next week.
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=196468&Sn=BUSI&IssueID=30206

EU LAUNCHES INQUIRY INTO PROHIBITION ON PURCHASE OF UK PREMIUM BONDS IN IRELAND
The European Commission said it has decided to send an official request for information to Ireland on its rules that bar Irish residents from purchasing United Kingdom premium bonds, which it suspects may be impeding the European internal market.
http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/10/17/afx4228733.html

*************************************
IFC NewsLinks is brought to you by:

Capital Conservator Treasury Services SA - The Private Financial Account Solution for Select Clients

Looking for a Low profile Alternative to Offshore Banking?
Click this link to find out more http://www.CapitalConservator.Com

CCTS is pleased to welcome:
* accounts from offshore companies, trusts, and foundations;
* other non-resident accounts;
* customers without bank references;
* special account needs;
* escrow accounts; and
* short-term transit accounts.

We provide customer service in English, Russian and Spanish.
Online account access now available!

*************************************

LLOYDS TO CONTEST MONEY LAUNDERING CHARGE
There was nothing obviously untoward about the letter the Geneva branch of Lloyds TSB sent an auditor in March 2001 that confirmed it was holding nearly $10m (£5m) in the account of a software company called AremisSoft.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21337961/

SINGAPORE STANCE ON BANK SECRECY PUTS EU TRADE DEAL IN DOUBT
Singapore won’t be changing its tough banking secrecy laws despite calls from the European Union for more transparency, a decision which could scuttle talks for a trade agreement between the island-state and the E.U.
http://www.fxstreet.com/news/forex-news/article.aspx?StoryId=1870f28d-84b6-458a-97dc-e4d9de5ba425

OECD SAYS SOME COUNTRIES NOT DOING ENOUGH TO COUNTER TAX EVASION
The OECD said some countries are still not doing enough to counter tax evasion, with significant restrictions on access to bank information for tax purposes in Austria, Luxembourg and Switzerland and Singapore.
http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/10/12/afx4214805.html

CALIFORNIA ORDERED TO PAY INTEREST ON SEIZED ASSETS
California taxpayers are on the hook for as much as $500 million in interest that a judge says the state owes to thousands of property owners whose assets were taken into trust under a troubled state program that manages abandoned property, officials acknowledged Tuesday. A federal judge in San Jose ordered state officials last week to begin paying interest to property owners whose assets were returned after being held in the state’s unclaimed property program. The ruling overturned a 2003 law that had halted interest payments.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/17/MNJOSR0ON.DTL&tsp=1