The virtual future of money laundering

On Jan. 20, Dutch police arrested 10 in the Netherlands as part of an international investigation into money laundering through sales of the virtual currency bitcoin, according to The Guardian article, Ten arrested in Netherlands over bitcoin money-laundering allegations. Criminals who work in the shadows of the dark web are often paid in virtual currency, which is an attractive way to launder funds.

While today's leading virtual currencies, like bitcoin, may or may not pass the test of time, the underlying technology is here to stay. Innovators are taking us into a new realm in the exciting (and to some, terrifying) world of virtual currency. How do we prevent criminals from abusing the system in this still fairly new technology?

Money launderers historically have far outstripped the efforts of regulators, law-enforcement officials and anti-money laundering (AML) professionals who try to stop them from circumventing the law. Fraud examiners should seriously consider what the future of money laundering involving virtual currencies might look like so they can close the gap between the good guys and the bad guys.