Regulators Go After US Banks on Money Laundering

Big US banks are in for another round of bad publicity, this time over the good old-fashioned problem of money laundering. The New York Times reports that regulators are about to crack down on JPMorgan Chase and possibly Bank of America for failing to keep track of big transfers of cash in and out of accounts, the beneficiaries being drug dealers and even terror groups looking to launder money.

The Times calls it "one of the most aggressive crackdowns on money laundering in decades" and offers an example of the type of thing that might be going on: A Texas court case this summer showed that Mexican cartels put drug money into two BofA accounts, then used the cash to buy racehorses. Regulators think banks in general have become too lax when it comes to fishy transactions and will demand better safeguards. (More money laundering stories.)