OAIN 2140 - Financial Intelligence, Illicit Finance, and International Security

***NEW COURSE***

If money makes the world go ‘round… it can also plunge it into chaos. Terrorism, violent extremism, kleptocracy, proliferation, hostile state activity: these and other threats to international peace and security all feature salient financial dynamics. From a financial intelligence-led approach to international security, transaction data and bank account information, mostly held by the private sector, become vital tools for countering some of the most pressing security threats of our times. This module will introduce students to the fundamentals of how financial intelligence is collected and used by law enforcement and security services, the opportunities and challenges posed by a financial intelligence-led approach, as well as some of the moral and ethical implications of states collecting and using financial intelligence for security purposes.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Understand and be able to clearly describe the various means by which states collect, analyse and use financial intelligence to counter security threats.

• Analyse security issues and challenges from a financial intelligence or threat finance perspective.

• Be able to engage critically with the moral and ethical debates on the use of financial intelligence.

• Demonstrate understanding of international architecture and processes involved in the global fight against illicit finance, including the role of the private sector.

PROFESSIONAL SKILLS

• Students will acquire an appreciation for the role of anti-financial crime compliance within the banking sector, and its contribution to maintaining international security.

• Students will hone their ability to write and orally present policy-focused outputs for time-poor audiences.

Stephen REIMER
Séminaire
English
- In Class Presence: 2 hours a week / 24 hours a semester

- Reading and Preparation for Class: 3 hours a week / 36 hours a semester

- Research and Preparation for Group Work: 2 hours a week / 24 hours a semester

- Research and Writing for Individual Assessments: 3 hours a week / 36 hours a semester

N/A

Spring 2023-2024
• In-seminar oral participation (throughout) 10%

• Group Presentation (in weeks 3-12) 40%

• 2,000–3,000 words Individual Written Assignment (due shortly after end of week 12) 50%

Written feedback on group presentations and individual written assignments are available upon request (not more than 2 weeks after delivery of the presentation or submission of the written assignment).

1. Jessica Davis, Illicit Money: Financing Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century (Boulder: Lynne Reinner, 2021)
2. Matthew Redhead, Deep Impact? Refocusing the Anti-Money Laundering Model on Evidence and Outcomes, RUSI Occasional Papers, 11 October 2019.
3. Peter Neumann, Don't Follow the Money: The Problem with the War on Terrorist Financing, Foreign Affairs (Vol. 96, No. 4, 2017)
4. Matthew Levitt et al., Can Bankers Fight Terrorism? What You Get When You Follow the Money, Foreign Affairs (Vol. 96, No. 6, 2017)
5. Julia Morse, The Banker's Blacklist: Unofficial Market Enforcement and the Global Fight Against Illicit Finance, (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2022)
6. Martin S. Navias, Finance and Security: Global Vulnerabilities, Threats and Responses (London: Hurst, 2019)
7. Juan Zarate, Treasury's War: The Unleashing of a New Era of Financial Warfare (New York: PublicAffairs, 2015)