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Hawala: How Extralegal Compliance Helps Bank The Unbanked, Morgan Henry

Economic Crime Forensics Capstones

Informal value transfer systems (IVTS') predate not only traditional banking systems, but the entire Western European civilization as well. Used as a reliable method to transfer value from one geographic region to another through a close-knit network of trusted individuals, IVTS' serve as an invaluable facilitator for the movement of billions of dollars across international borders without ever leaving a paper trail. The term “hawala”, which is Arabic for “transfer” or “trust”, is an IVTS that serves as a parallel banking system for those wishing to send value (often in the form of currency) overseas. Hawala has historically thrived as …