Treliant Takeaway…FinCEN Issues Analysis on Elder Financial Exploitation

FinCEN Issues Analysis on Elder Financial Exploitation

• Source: fincen.gov

Takeaway

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) reported that U.S. financial institutions identified approximately $27 billion in suspicious activities related to elder financial exploitation from June 2022 to June 2023.

Treliant provides expert consulting services to help financial institutions enhance their ability to detect, prevent, and report elder financial exploitation by implementing robust compliance frameworks and training programs. Our tailored solutions are designed to align with FinCEN’s guidelines, ensuring institutions not only meet regulatory requirements but also effectively protect elderly clients from financial abuse.

Highlights

In its April 18, 2024, notice, FinCEN stresses the importance of vigilance and cooperation among financial institutions to combat elder financial exploitation. It highlights the necessity for ongoing adherence to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and emphasizes the role of its data in tracking and analyzing suspicious activities. The notice points to educational resources and support systems, such as the National Elder Fraud Hotline, that aid victims. It also calls for continuous improvement of tools available to banks and other entities to effectively tackle this form of financial abuse.

Key statistics from the notice highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive measures against elder financial exploitation are as follows:

• $27 Billion: Total reported by financial institutions in suspicious activities related to elder financial exploitation from June 15, 2022, to June 15, 2023.
• 155,415 Filings: Number of BSA reports filed during the one-year period that either used the key term from FinCEN’s June 2022 Elder Financial Exploitation (EFE) Advisory or checked “Elder Financial Exploitation” as a suspicious activity type.
• 15,993 Reports Per Month: Average number of EFE-related BSA reports received by FinCEN from June 15, 2023, to January 15, 2024.
• 80% of Reports: Proportion of analyzed EFE BSA reports that identified elder scams.
• 20% of Reports: Proportion of analyzed EFE BSA reports that identified elder theft.

More information including red flags can be found in FinCEN’s 2022 EFE Advisory linked here.