Banks Have Quotas for Filing SARS & CTRs Reports with FinCen.

First, we need a glossary to deconstruct this myth that has been circulating among various conspiracy websites:

CTR- Currency transaction report
FinCEn- Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
SARS- Suspicious Activity Reports

FinCen was created by the Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering legislation.  Obviously, it was designed to prevent criminals from hiding ill-gotten gains.  (Just little annoying criminals, that is.  Criminals that might crimp the style of the really big criminals, like Wall Street banks.)

FinCen does not have quotas for banks to report Suspicious Activities that force the banks to cast about for fresh victims.  Examiners do look for patterns:  why would one bank in the same neighborhood have far fewer suspicious activities than another?  Are they maybe a little too friendly to local drug dealers?  But there is no quota system.


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