money laundering

(law) A popular term used to describe the process by which criminals disguise the nature, location, source, ownership or control of illicitly acquired funds. Money laundering typically involves three steps: 1) Placement: Physically placing cash at a domestic or offshore location, such as in a business or bank, 2) Layering: Establishing layers of complex financial transactions to obscure the money’s source, location and ownership, and 3) Integration: Establishing legitimate but false explanations as to the origin of the funds.