Money Laundering-as-a-service: an empirical analysis of false invoicing providers

• In Event: The markets of money laundering and of anti-money laundering

Abstract

False invoicing - i.e. the issuance of invoices for services that do not exist, or whose value does not correspond to the actual value of what is exchanged – is one of the most neglected crimes by criminological research. However, it has become a key offence in most of nowadays organised and financial crime schemes, including mafia-type ones. False invoicing serves for multiple purposes – reduce tax burden, reduce corporate costs, create slash funds, launder money. By carrying out an empirical analysis of several dozens of cases of false invoicing detected in Italy, this paper provides a sociological and criminological interpretation of why this offence is employed, by whom it is exploited and who provides these criminal services. The analysis reveals the existence of dedicated providers, including foreign individuals and organizations, who are specialized in money laundering-as-a-service through false invoicing. Eventually, false invoicing has been radically changing not only the future perspectives of the money laundering market, but also the nature of predicate crimes themselves, including traditional mafia behaviors.

Author

• Michele Riccardi, Transcrime - Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore