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China

Over $400 million suspected in money laundering

BEIJING - China said it has unearthed over US$20 million worth of money laundering activities recently and suspects another $400 million worth of illegal foreign exchange transactions by individuals and companies that have been placed on a "black list".

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), the communist nation's forex watchdog, ordered its regional branches to check the forex transactions of more than 18,000 companies and individuals from March to December last year.

The search uncovered 36 illegal cases involving more than $20 million in forex funds.

The administration also transferred another 123 suspected money laundering cases, which involved more than six of the cases, involving $5.8 million have been settled, while the rest are still under investigation, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The names of companies and individuals whose forex transactions were found to be normal by the administration will be put on the clean list, or a "white list," while those suspected of breaking laws and regulations will be blacklisted for further investigation.

The administration will put the names of companies and individuals whose forex transactions could not be determined to be either legal or illegal on a list for close watching, a SAFE official said.

(Asia Pulse/PTI)

Aug 12, 2004

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