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Ministry of Finance | Ministry of Home Affairs | Ministry of External Affairs | Reserve Bank of India (RBI))
The UK Government has announced a major Illicit Finance Summit, scheduled for 23-24 June 2026 at Lancaster House, London. The summit aims to build an international coalition of governments, civil society, and the private sector to combat the flow of “dirty money,” which the Foreign Secretary describes as the “lifeblood of crime”. The event will precede the launch of the UK’s new Anti-Corruption Strategy. The FCDO is also providing a £3 million funding package to support investigative journalism organizations like Transparency International and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) to expose illicit wealth.
What is Illicit Finance? Illicit finance refers to the movement of money or value that is illegally earned, transferred, or used. In this context, it specifically targets mechanisms like illicit gold trading, which funds conflicts (e.g., in Sudan and Ukraine); property laundering, used by kleptocrats to hide cash; and the misuse of crypto-assets, exploited by smuggling gangs to evade detection.
Policy Relevance
For Indian policymakers, this summit offers a critical diplomatic opening to address high-priority concerns regarding fugitive economic offenders and asset recovery, particularly given the UK’s historical role as a destination for such flight capital. The focus on illicit gold directly aligns with the Department of Revenue’s battle against gold smuggling syndicates, while the emphasis on crypto-assets reinforces India’s recent G20 leadership in demanding a globally coordinated regulatory framework to prevent digital terror financing and money laundering.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: How will the Ministry of External Affairs and the Enforcement Directorate leverage this new international coalition to expedite the extradition of economic fugitives and trace Indian black money laundered through the UK property market?
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