• photo credit Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin walking at Zhongnanhai (2025), 21 May 2025. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

    EU Weighs Sanctions on Chinese Refineries Linked to Russia

    The European Commission is preparing to target several independent Chinese refineries in its forthcoming sanctions package against Russia, Reuters reported, citing unnamed EU officials.

  • photo credit J o. Photograph of the SMBC Kobe Office Building. 20 Nov. 2009. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY‑SA 3.0. Edited version.

    Fed Terminates AML Order against SMBC

    The Federal Reserve terminated a 2019 enforcement action against Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC), concluding a six-year period of heightened scrutiny over the institution’s anti-money laundering (AML) practices. 

  • OFAC Blacklists Cyber Scammers in Southeast Asia

    The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday blacklisted 19 entities linked to large cyber-scam compounds in Southeast Asia that have targeted Americans in romance and cryptocurrency-investment swindles. 

  • JPMorgan to Pay $330 Million to Resolve 1MDB Case in Malaysia 

    JPMorgan Chase will pay $330 million to the government of Malaysia to settle claims that it facilitated the processing of $800 million in fraudulent transactions linked to the looting of Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB.  The settlement, which binds both parties from any future claims or litigations related to the scandal, follows allegations by Malaysian […]

  • photo credit Rob Hornstra, “Aleksander Zelekson, Nizhny Novgorod (2007),” cropped and edited from the original, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

    Censored and Sanctioned, Russian Television Plays American Hit Shows

    As the war in Ukraine grinds on, Russians continue to seek respite from the conflict by turning to movie and TV streaming services, including at least one that is showing HBO hit shows.  In a story on how the Russian government strongarms media companies into censoring content in line with Putin’s conservative social agenda, New York […]