FinCEN Issues Guidance to Help Financial Institutions Eliminate Fraud Through Information Sharing

WASHINGTON—Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued updated guidance to clarify how financial institutions can share information with each other about suspected fraud under section 314(b) of the USA PATRIOT Act. “Americans lose hundreds of billions of dollars to fraud each year. At Treasury, we follow the money, and we know financial institutions are often the first to see suspicious activity in real time. They need the tools to act quickly and share information that can help stop fraud before it spreads,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. “Under President Trump and Vice President Vance’s leadership, we will continue targeting fraud wherever it occurs and protecting American taxpayers and consumers.”FinCEN’s updated guidance clarifies that a financial institution may share information about activity involving suspected fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, or other specified unlawful activities, and that it may share that information with any other financial institution eligible to participate