On February 4, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) released the “Study of the Facilitation of Money Laundering and Terror Finance through the Trade in Works of Art” (Study). The Study assesses the various risks of the high-value art market based on its propensities for money laundering and illicit financing.
Specifically, the Study addresses three main ways art is used to launder money.
- Accepting art as payment to integrate illegally obtained funds into the financial system.
- Purchasing art with illicit funds, holding it for several years, and then selling it for a profit.
- Using art purchased with unlawfully obtained monies and offering it as collateral for a loan.
