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ABSTRACT
Research and Analysis on Underground Banking Crime between Taiwan and China by Wang, Shao-Chen January 2007 ADVISOR(S): Dr. SHEU, CHUEN-JIM DEPARTMENT: GRADUATE SCHOOL OF CRIMINOLOGY MAJOR: CRIMINOLOGY DEGREE: MASTER OF LAW
Underground financing and banking between Taiwan and China has been an issue for a long time. There are two reasons for the cause of this situation. First of all, after the lifting of martial law, Taiwan and China opened the door for visiting families and relatives. However, Taiwan and China have a long complicate historical entanglement in politics. Second of all, after the reformation and liberation, China’s economy and trade has developed rapidly. China’s rapid development of China and its magnetic effect are now the focus of world attention. In addition, the politic and economic issues between China and Taiwan make Taiwan lose the glorious prospect of being the head of the East Asian Tigers. As a result, many Taiwanese businesses moved their investment to Mainland China due to same language and race. Facing with the “Magnetic Effect” of China’s growing economic, the number of Taiwanese company moving to Mainland China for investment purpose is increasing, and the dependency of economic and trade between Taiwan and China is rising. Due to the provision of the laws and regulations (Article 36 of Taiwan & Mainland People Relationship Regulation), Taiwan and China are not allowed to have direct trade relations or direct banking. It has to re-invest through subsidiary companies in the third country. As a result, many Taiwanese companies invest in China via illegally ways. Take the recent issue derived from the re-investment in “Ho Chien” by United Microelectronics Corp. as an example, when the political issue between China and Taiwan is unsettled, and the business negotiation channel between China and Taiwan is still at a standstill. Consequently, the underground direct banking channel derived from the interaction between China and Taiwan (here direct banking also known as “Substitute Remittance”) becomes the paradise for money laundering.
The purpose of this research is to discover the cause of underground financial crime between China and Taiwan based on the criminology theory “white-collar crime”. This study uses “content analysis method” to research and analyze related documents and cases. Through discovering, discussing and analyzing problems, we hope to reach a conclusion and give a valuable suggestion for future researchers. The objective of this study is to provide concrete, feasible and effective solutions and strategies for underground financial crime problems between China and Taiwan and to provide valuable reference materials for relevant government departments to implement their works.
This study discovered that most individual underground banking agents are engaged in businesses, or have long been familiar with business affairs between China and Taiwan. Also, a lot of underground banking agents are jewelry shops. Most underground banking agents have fraudulent accounts to transfer money and offset debts and credits through cash couriers. For corporation underground banking agents, they usually set up offshore subsidiary companies to process triangle trade. Corporation underground banking utilizes OBU to transact foreign exchange. The incentive of underground banking is because of its privacy, convenience, and low surcharge. The reason why people choose underground banking is based on “Rational Choice” and “Routine Activity” theories. From a social anomies aspect, the need of underground banking between Taiwan and China is increasing. Because the relevant regulations are not complete and ideal, people try to avoid the restriction of regulations and moralities. In consequence, people fall into so-called “Social Anomies” situation and don't know what course to take. From a "White-collar Crime” aspect, the behavior of individual underground banking agents (jewelry shops), such as illegal profit gains and tax evasion, can be considered as group crime. They utilize their legal status to commit crimes. For corporation underground banking agents, they used registered offshore subsidiary companies or bubble companies to transfer money and empty capital assets. The three characteristics of “White-collar Crime” are trust (people’s trust to the listed company), respectability (people’s respect to operator of listed company), and risk (investment risk).
For individual underground banking between Taiwan and China, we suggest the relevant authority keeps checking fraudulent accounts of underground banking thoroughly based on bank’s reports of “Suspicious Money Laundering Transaction”. Most jewelry shops, as underground banking agents, have cash couriers to offset accounts. In order to prevent illegal underground banking, customs should register and compile statistics for Currency Declaration, and submit the report to the IT platform of Money Laundering Prevent Center to integrate and analyze data, and then investigate the suspicious underground banking agents between Taiwan and China. In respect of corporation underground banking between Taiwan and China, because Taiwan cannot exercise jurisdiction over offshore subsidiary companies, we suggest the authority set up OBU regulations in Taiwan and investigate the situation of OBU banking between Taiwan and China in order to prevent the happening of crime in advance.
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