Standards of Alternative Remittance Systems in Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism

Financial transactions within the economic life of various societies have never been confined to formal methods approved by states. To the contrary, based on the economic needs of individuals in every society, parallel to the formal mechanisms, other methods are employed for transferring funds and credit. Nonetheless, these alternative remittance systems, in addition to meeting legitimate needs, have sometimes been used by criminals for committing crimes such as money laundering and financing of terrorism to the effect that tracing and prosecuting the crimes becomes more difficult.International instruments such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, recommendations by the Financial Action Task Force, as well as Security Council Resolution 1373, have sought to encourage states to implement measures to combat such abuses. In recent years, the Islamic Republic of Iran has likewise made a considerable effort to ensure that its national legal system meets the standards laid down in international instruments, even as these endeavors require increased revision and update.