Hello, and welcome to episode 158 of the Financial Crime Weekly Podcast, I’m Chris Kirkbride. In this week’s episode, we begin with the UK’s latest sanctions enforcement strategy, including new measures targeting Russia’s financial networks, extremist settler groups in the West Bank, and corruption in Moldova and Georgia. We then cover the UK’s 100 new sanctions in response to Russia’s largest drone attack on Ukraine, alongside updates on whistleblowing protections for trade sanctions violations. Next, we examine the EU’s 17th sanctions package, tightening restrictions on Russia’s shadow fleet and military suppliers, followed by the US sanctions on Sudan for chemical weapons use and OFAC’s designation of Cartel del Noreste leaders for terrorism and trafficking. We also discuss transparency concerns over £64 billion hidden in UK property trusts, Europol’s Operation ENDGAME dismantling ransomware infrastructure, and HSBC’s warning that cybercrime is now its biggest expense. Finally, we explore the rise of AI-driven market manipulation, the UK’s deregulation push, and Europol’s latest analysis on how criminal networks destabilise the EU.

A transcript of this podcast, with links to the stories, will be available by Monday at www.crimes.financial.