Odd Lots · Monday, September 7, 2026
Oliver Bullough highlighted that trade-based money laundering, involving the misinvoicing of goods, is a far larger issue than laundering through regulated financial institutions. He cited estimates that $1 trillion annually moves via trade-based laundering, dwarfing the amounts laundered within the traditional financial system, which he also noted still occurs despite regulatory efforts.
“And that form of money laundering, trade-based money laundering, is almost impossible to estimate. I mean, there is an institution in Washington, Global Financial Integrity, that estimates that that's about a trillion dollars a year is moved via trade-based money laundering.”
“You know, we're talking about amounts of money being laundered outside the financial system that completely dwarfs what's happening within the financial system.”