Happy Friday! It’s March 21, and we’re tracking top stories to take you into the weekend: U.S. slaps Iran-related sanctions on China 'teapot' refinery, drone burglaries on the rise, the shadow web of payment providers fueling global scams, FinCEN removes beneficial ownership reporting requirements for U.S. companies, and much more…

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🎯 FEATURED STORY

U.S. slaps Iran-related sanctions on oil tankers, China 'teapot' refinery. China and Iran have built a trading system that uses mostly Chinese yuan and a network of middlemen, avoiding the dollar and exposure to U.S. regulators. Reuters 

💸 Illicit Edge Originals: Sanctions & Economic Security with Juan Zarate Coercive Capital

🔥 TOP STORIES

Using Drones for Peeping, Burglaries On Rise: “It’s Gotten Dramatically Worse” Hollywood Reporter

Huge Ecosystem of Unregulated Payment Providers Helps Scammers Collect Victims’ Money OCCRP 

💸 Illicit Edge Originals: Pig Butchering Uncovered with Erin West DESIGNATED 

FinCEN Removes Beneficial Ownership Reporting Requirements for U.S. Companies and U.S. Persons, Sets New Deadlines for Foreign Companies FinCEN

Trump eyes lifting sanctions, sale of prized fighter jet to Turkey Fox 

Feeding Our Future leader convicted in $250M scheme that exploited child nutrition program USAT 

Trump Has a China Trade War Weapon He Hasn’t Picked Up WSJ 

💸 Illicit Edge Originals: Corporate America’s China Challenge Coercive Capital 

Trump Weighs Sanctions on Foreign Funders of Pro-Hamas Campus Protests Free Beacon 

Media tycoon who bankrolled Taylor Swift, Rihanna sued for corruption and money laundering in Africa NYP 

Feds in Chicago Seizes $214M in “Pump and Dump” Fraud Investigation DOJ 

Inside the competitive world of billionaires racing to collect the most citizenships NYP 

U.S. sanctions Argentina’s Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and a former minister MH 

Zadeh Kicks Owner Pleads Guilty to $80M Sneaker Fraud CFO Dive

💥 RUSSIA & CHINA

New U.S. sanctions to slow but not stop China's Iranian oil imports Reuters

U.S. Retreating From Push to Enforce Russia Sanctions Bloomberg

FCC probes Huawei, other Chinese firms are seeking to evade curbs Reuters 

Biden Export Control Official Predicts Continued Aggressive Approach Under Trump WSJ 

Hong Kong’s richest man is in hot water over Panama Canal ports deal AP 

Russia Touts Economic Opportunities. Western Companies Are Wary. WSJ

💸 CORRUPTION & FINANCIAL CRIME

Supreme Court Rules for Chicago Politician in Bank Fraud Case NYT

🔥 Illicit Edge Originals: The Laundry Man DESIGNATED 

Huawei suspended from key tech lobby group over corruption scandal Politico 

U.K., France and Switzerland Launch New Task Force to Fight Bribery UK Gov 

Six Defendants Charged With Stealing $80M In Government Check Fraud Scheme DOJ

🔐 CRYPTO & CYBER

U.S. Government Removes Tornado Cash Sanctions CoinDesk 

Modernizing the U.S. Dollar for the Future of Digital Networks Digital Dollar Project 

Thorchain watched Lazarus launder $900M in stolen crypto. That’s a big problem for DeFi DLN 

SEC crypto roundtable begins work of regulatory overhaul Axios 

South Korea Plans Sanctions Against BitMEX, KuCoin, Others CoinDesk

🚚 TRAFFICKING

Gangbanger wanted for human trafficking is first migrant detained under Trump’s newly invoked Alien Enemies Act NYP

‘People will die’: alarm as Trump’s DEI rollback hits anti-trafficking efforts Guardian

Fentanyl Traffickers, U.S. Adversaries Biggest Winners in New Treasury Proposal Benefitting Money Launderers FACT Coalition 

Taxpayer-Funded Immigration Group Chaired by DOJ Employee Wants To Abolish ICE, Defund Police Free Beacon

Venezuela’s Maduro calls US deportation of migrants to El Salvador a ‘kidnapping,’ backs calls for their return CNN

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