Overview
- FinCEN reported in mid‑August 2026 that nearly $4.9 billion in transactions from 2023 through 2025 were flagged as linked to suspected human smuggling based on Bank Secrecy Act filings.
- The agency reviewed 67,540 suspicious‑activity reports and found filings peaked in 2024 at 29,266 then fell to 11,018 in 2025, a decline the coverage ties to policy changes under President Trump and a large drop in official southern‑border encounters.
- Money services businesses accounted for about 97% of the flagged reports by count, while traditional banks reported roughly 61% of the dollars flagged, showing different roles for remittance firms and depository institutions.
- FinCEN identified recurring red flags such as large cash activity near the southwest border, transfers along migration routes, unverifiable sender‑recipient ties, inconsistent refunds, and multi‑million dollar charter‑flight payments routed through countries including Egypt, the UAE, Jamaica and Nicaragua.
- Treasury said the findings will be shared with law enforcement and the private sector to disrupt networks, and officials cautioned that smugglers changing tactics can raise safety risks for migrants, including deadly concealments and increased sea crossings.