FinCEN, DOJ Hammer Brink’s Over AML Failures, Levy Landmark Penalty
In a significant and somewhat ironic development in the ongoing domestic fight against financial crime, Brink’s Global Services USA has reached a settlement with both the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) over allegations of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and various willful violations of anti-money laundering (AML) laws.
The Brink’s Company is a renowned American secure solutions firm whose reach has now extended to include a growing number of global business ventures. While most widely known for its armored car services that utilize bullet-proof trucks for transporting funds and high-valued goods to businesses across a wide variety of industries functioning in varying jurisdictions, the company’s greater operations have grown exponentially over the last decade behind an impressive network of secure worldwide logistics. This growth has allowed the firm to expand into the respective realms of cash management & payment services, international transportation and storage of valuables, ATM replenishment & maintenance, and even home security services for its wide-ranging customer base. However, it is the company’s long-standing stature in the realm of both personal and cyber-security that further adds to the puzzling nature of the regulatory investigations ran against them over the alleged involvement of the firm’s global services arm in anti-money laundering failures.
A press release from the U.S. Department of Justice identified that a subsidiary of Brink’s, Inc. coined Brink’s Global Services USA was ordered to forfeit over $50 million to resolve criminal allegations that it operated as an unlicensed money transmitting business while also failing to implement and maintain an effective AML program, and subsequently failing to file necessary suspicious activity reports. Brink’s Global Services – which operates primarily as a transporter of currency and valuables on behalf of its international clientele – admitted to its failing to appropriately register its money transmission activities both domestically and internationally, with the subsidiary agreeing to a non-prosecution agreement which will allow the company to avoid criminal prosecution in exchange for meeting certain outlined criteria from the involved regulatory bodies. For covered domestic entities, registering as a money services business remains a critical step under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) to prevent money laundering and associated financial crimes. In failing to do so, Brink’s Global Services ultimately transported vast sums of money across international borders without being submitted to the necessary AML controls or general oversight of their activity.
Regulators believe that Brink’s failures in this regard were likely to have contributed to the proliferation of illicit financial activities throughout Mexico and the United States, including narcotics trafficking. The U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) investigation into the firm’s operations from 2018 to 2020 ultimately discovered that Brink’s Global Services facilitated the transmittance of hundreds of millions of dollars in bulk currency shipments across the Southwest Border of the U.S. on behalf of high-risk entities – including a Mexican currency exchanger that later pleaded guilty to violating the BSA.2 The involved government agencies allege that on eight occasions, Brink’s Global Services was involved in the importation of currency totaling more than $35 million into the United States from Mexico, utilizing two additional currency transporters to facilitate the initial importation and follow-up domestic transportation of the involved funds. These cross-border transshipments of currency reportedly fall outside the safe harbor of the currency transporter exemption – which allows a company to avoid Bank Secrecy Act requirements if transactions involve just one company or individual and no third parties – and subsequently rendered Brink’s as an unlicensed money transmitter.1
Further, Brink’s Global Services was also found to have transported more than $15 million from a money service business in San Diego to a separate money service business in Florida across 12 transactions, but failed to seek or obtain information confirming that the final beneficiary of each transaction was not someone other than the shipper.1 They also failed to maintain appropriate AML compliance controls in place to make such confirmation, with the funds involved ultimately discovered to have been transmitted to a third-party that was never identified by Brink’s – and one that still remains unidentified to this day.
This settlement marks a pivotal moment in the enforcement of AML regulations, highlighting the DOJ’s commitment to ensuring that businesses involved in the transfer of currency adhere to today’s stringent regulatory requirements. The landmark settlement also marks the first ever resolution reached with an armored car company based on admissions of criminal wrongdoing in this regard.1 The implications of these settlements are far-reaching, as they not only emphasize the importance of compliance with AML regulations but also signal to other companies in similar sectors the severe consequences of neglecting their respective obligations.
Brink’s has since acknowledged the findings of the investigation, stating that upon learning of the DOJ’s scrutiny in 2020, it conducted an internal review of its own operations and has since enhanced its global ethics and compliance program. These developments were recognized by the DOJ in their settlement agreement. The settlement with FinCEN also includes provisions for Brink’s to undergo an AML program review, ensuring that future operations will be conducted under more rigorous compliance standards. All told, the resolution between Brink’s, DOJ, and FinCEN not only penalizes past non-compliance but also reinforces the regulatory framework aimed at safeguarding the integrity of both the domestic and international financial system from money laundering and other illicit activities. Businesses across the spectrum must take heed, understanding that compliance is not just a legal requirement but a fundamental aspect of corporate responsibility.
Citations
- “Brink’s Forfeits $50 Million for Failing to Register as a Money Transmitting Business.” Southern District of California, United States Department of Justice, 6 Feb. 2025.
- “FinCEN Announces $37,000,000 Civil Money Penalty against Brink’s Global Services USA, Inc. for Violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.” Gov, U.S. Department of the Treasury, 6 Feb. 2025.