Some 19 British firms are at the center of an investigation into in a mammoth global money-laundering operation. The scheme was allegedly contrived to make $20bn (£12.5bn) worth of ill-gotten gains appear legitimate. The illicit funds are thought to have originated from criminal gangs and corrupt officials across the globe, attempting to make their dirty money appear ‘clean’ so it can... 

Sochi Olympics, a PR stunt, a response to calls within society, or even a mistake: RT spoke with analysts to find out possible reasons behind Putin’s decision to pardon Khodorkovsky – and its likely consequences. In a surprise move, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that he would sign a pardon for jailed former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovsky. The oil tycoon was arrested in 2003... 

A court in Greece has sentenced former defense minister, Akis Tsochatzopoulos, to 20 years in prison for money laundering. The court found Tsochatzopoulos and 16 of his co-defendants guilty in a six-million money laundering case that has become emblematic of political corruption in the European country. Akis Tsochatzopoulos, 73, a founding member of the socialist Pasok party and a leading figure on... 

The Italian mafia is ramping up investment in wind farms to launder money and benefit from EU subsidies. Europol reports winds farms, and renewable energy in general, are the most popular target for laundering money, after analysing the financial activities of Italy’s four mafia groups. “The Italian mafia is investing more and more in renewable energy, especially in wind farms, to profit... 

It would be naive to believe that the destruction of the Cyprus offshore zone was a “terrible mistake” of European politics made in a noble struggle with offshore companies in general or those where Russian oligarchs are laundering their money. The analysis shows that this is a part of the plan for building a new world order required for the forthcoming collapse of the U.S. debt pyramid.... 

The attorney general of the United States says the country’s largest banks may be too big to jail, but the former chief economist for the International Monetary Fund isn’t exactly convinced. Simon Johnson, the former top IMF economist and a current professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management, published a blistering editorial in Bloomberg News this week that makes an argument for imprisoning... 

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has resigned his post. Israel’s combative foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, unexpectedly resigned on Friday after being indicted on corruption charges, throwing the country’s political system into uncertainty just five weeks before a general election. His resignation, a day after the attorney general, Yehuda Weinstein, charged him with fraud and breach... 

Cyprus may lose financial support from the EU due to “suspicious ties” with Russian oligarchs. According to information published in Spiegel magazine, the German Federal Intelligence Service suspects that the loan, which the EU and the IMF may give the country, will only sweeten the life of Russian businessmen who keep their money in Cyprus. It was written in Monday’s issue of Spiegel... 

One of the biggest high street banks, London based HSBC, have been caught up in funding terrorism and money laundering for the Mexican drug cartels. HSBC’s activities in Saudi Arabia were brought into question in a report, which specifically refers to banking with Al Rajhi Bank. The investigation claims the Saudi bank has links to financing terrorism, based on evidence gathered after the September... 

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, left, and his co-defendant Platon Lebedev, right, talk behind a glass enclosure at a court room in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Dec. 30, 2010. Khodorkovsky, 47, is in the final year of an eight-year sentence after being convicted of tax evasion, and the new conviction on charges of embezzlement and money laundering could keep him behind bars for several more years. A judge read the... 

Attorney Scott Rothstein returned to Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday after contemplating suicide amid mounting allegations that he misappropriated hundreds of millions of dollars from an investment business he covertly ran out of his law office. Stuart Rosenfeldt, the president of the Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler law firm, said he was told that Rothstein met with federal prosecutors after his chartered...