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Smurfing and structuring are banking terms used to describe the splitting of a large financial transaction into multiple smaller transactions. This is done to evade scrutiny by regulators or law enforcement. Typically each of these smaller transactions is below some limit, above which financial institutions must file a report with a government agency. Criminal enterprises often send different couriers to make these transactions, and those couriers are known as smurfs in this context.

United States practice

In the United States, the Bank Secrecy Act requires the filing of a currency transaction report for transactions of $10,000 or more. Financial institutions that suspect structuring are required to file a suspicious activity report.

The term "smurfing" is in widespread use in the context of money laundering, and has been known to appear in official Federal criminal indictments. However the more formal (and euphemistic) term is "structuring a deposit".

Television origins of smurfing

The stream of cheery students arriving in the Cayman Islands with packs of money may have reminded law enforcers of The Smurfs because "The Smurfing Song", the 1978 novelty hit by Father Abraham and the Smurfs, began with the words, "Where are you all coming from?"

Regulatory Table

Transaction Limits by Nation, "below what level will I not have to fill out any paperwork"?

References

1. Information for the general public and Cash Dealer Information pages at the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre

External links

• Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ruling on stucturing

• Banking terms and equipment
• Crimes