The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network - more commonly known as FinCEN - is a bureau within the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Its primary objective is to protect the financial system from illegal activities, prevent money laundering and terrorism financing and enhance national security. To achieve these goals, FinCEN uses its authority over financial data, collecting and analyzing transaction information to uncover and combat financial crimes.

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FinCEN fulfills this mission by gathering data on financial transactions, analyzing it, and sharing insights with law enforcement for investigations. It also collaborates internationally with similar agencies and global organizations to strengthen financial security worldwide.

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The legal foundation of FinCEN’s work is the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), established in 1970 and expanded by the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001. This law allows the regulations to be established that require banks and other financial institutions to take steps against financial crime. These steps include establishing Anti-Money Laundering (AML) programs and submitting reports that aid in criminal, tax and regulatory investigations - as well as intelligence and counter-terrorism efforts. The Secretary of the Treasury has given FinCEN the authority to implement, oversee and enforce compliance with the BSA and its related rules.

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The U.S. Congress has given FinCEN specific duties to collect, analyze and share financial data that helps support the government and financial industry at Federal, State, local and international levels. To detect and prevent financial crime, FinCEN:

- Issues and interprets regulations as required by law.

- Supports and enforces compliance with these regulations.

- Coordinates with other Federal regulators to monitor compliance.

- Collects, stores, processes and protects data submitted under FinCEN’s reporting requirements.

- Manages access to this data, allowing agencies with overlapping interests to connect and use it.

- Assists law enforcement in investigations and prosecutions.

- Analyzes data to direct resources where the financial crime risk is highest.

- Works with Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) in other countries to coordinate Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter Terrorist Financing (CFT) efforts.

- Provides analysis to support policymakers, law enforcement, regulatory bodies, intelligence agencies, other FIUs and the financial industry.

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FinCEN serves as the FIU for the United States and is part of the Egmont Group, an international organization of over 100 FIUs working together to share information and cooperate on financial crime issues. As one of the world's leading FIUs, FinCEN exchanges financial information with FIU counterparts around the world in support of U.S. and foreign financial crime investigations.

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A core principle behind FinCEN’s work is “follow the money”. Criminals seek financial gain, leaving a financial trail as they attempt to launder their proceeds or spend their illegal earnings. FinCEN partners with law enforcement at all government levels to support U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives. These techniques, along with FinCEN’s data, help law enforcement agencies investigate and prosecute a range of crimes including fraud, tax evasion and drug trafficking. More recently, these “follow the money” strategies are also being used to identify and disrupt the financial networks that support terrorist groups.