The U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has issued orders identifying three Mexican financial institutions—CIBanco, Intercam, and Vector Casa de Bolsa—as being of primary money laundering concern in connection with fentanyl trafficking. The orders, announced Wednesday, mark the first actions under the Fentanyl Sanctions Act and the FEND Off Fentanyl Act, granting Treasury new powers to disrupt illicit opioid financing networks. These institutions are accused of facilitating millions in transactions tied to Mexico-based cartels such as the CJNG, Sinaloa Cartel, and Gulf Cartel, including payments for precursor chemicals from China.
The prohibitions, which bar U.S. financial institutions from processing any fund transfers involving these firms, will take effect 21 days after publication in the Federal Register. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the move “affirms Treasury’s commitment to using all tools at our disposal” to combat the fentanyl crisis. The Biden-era classification of cartels as terrorist entities, formalized through a January 2025 Executive Order by President Trump, underpins these efforts. FinCEN cited serious AML/CFT compliance failures within all three institutions, including direct meetings with cartel operatives, laundered funds through Chinese shell companies, and repeated transfers to chemical exporters fueling fentanyl production.
