FinCEN: Financial Institutions Flag Nearly $5 Billion Tied To Human Smuggling
By CU Today Staff —
WASHINGTON—Financial institutions flagged nearly $5 billion in suspicious activity potentially linked to the smuggling of people across borders from 2023 through 2025, according to a new Financial Crimes Enforcement Network analysis.
FinCEN examined 67,540 Bank Secrecy Act reports and identified recurring warning signs including unverifiable relationships between senders and recipients, transactions along common migration routes and excessive cash activity along the Southwest border.
Money services businesses filed approximately 97% of the BSA reports analyzed, but banks, credit unions and other depository institutions accounted for most of the suspicious dollars. Depository institutions filed only about 3% of the reports but accounted for approximately 61% of the total suspicious activity amount, according to FinCEN. Their reports identified potential indicators including structured cash transactions, funnel accounts receiving funds from numerous individuals and travel agencies arranging travel for migrants.
FinCEN also found suspected human smuggling related BSA reports peaked in 2024 before declining 62% in 2025. The United States ranked first among countries identified as subject locations, followed by Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia. Among reports filed by money services businesses, 59% indicated there was no verifiable familial relationship between the transaction originator and beneficiary.
“Many human smuggling networks generate profit for larger transnational criminal organizations, including Mexico-based drug cartels,” said FinCEN Director Andrea Gacki. “Suspicious activity flagged by financial institutions provides critical information, and we will continue to work closely with both the private sector and law enforcement to dismantle human smuggling networks and protect our borders.”
Originally reported by CU Today.