Enter FFETF
Finally; a new acronym. FFETF. Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. Why the wait?
Anyway: a new task force, headed by DOJ, with a serious mission:
“This task force’s mission is not just to hold accountable those who helped bring about the last financial meltdown, but to prevent another meltdown from happening.”
The taskforce is composed of senior-level officials from over 20 departments, agencies and offices, including DOJ, FBI, SEC, Secret Service and IRS.
“It’s not enough to prosecute fraud only after it’s become widespread. We can’t wait for problems to peak before we respond. We’re seeking comprehensive financial reform to create a more stable, safer financial system and stepping up our enforcement strategy. Doing so will help to stop emerging trends in financial fraud before they’re able to cause extensive, system-wide damage to our economy.”
“To give American families the protection and peace-of-mind they need, it’s clear the federal response must be as interconnected and multi-dimensional as the challenges we face,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “No one agency is going to be able to stop financial fraud. This Task force will build upon many of the inter-agency collaborations already underway to protect consumers and restore confidence.”
“Many financial frauds are complicated puzzles that require painstaking efforts to piece together. By formally coordinating our efforts, we will be better able to identify the pieces, assemble the puzzle and put an end to the fraud,” said SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro.
The FFETF will “provide advice to the Attorney General for theinvestigation and prosecution of cases of bank,mortgage, loan, and lending fraud; securities and commodities fraud; retirement plan fraud; mail andwire fraud; tax crimes; money laundering; False ClaimsAct violations; unfair competition; discrimination;and other financial crimes and violations (hereinafterfinancial crimes and violations), when such cases aredetermined by the Attorney General, for purposes of this order, to be significant”
It will also coordinate law enforcement efforts in the field of significant financial crime issues.
With the birth of FFETF, the CFTF (Corporate Fraud Task Force) will be discontinued. A new task force will have to prove itself. We suppose it will not take long before we see the first press release in relation to a FFETF effort. We will have to see how interagency politics deal with the FFETF. Its mission is important enough, so all the best to FFETF.
http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2009/November/09-opa-1243.html
