Money Laundering and Crypto-Assets: A Socio-Technical Approach to Financial Intelligence

Steven Meighan (Author)

ISBN: 9783032134806

Published: 10 January 2026

Format: Hardcover

Language: English

Publisher: Springer Cham

Description

Digital finance has become both an engine of innovation and a new frontier for organised and financial crime. This book examines how cryptocurrency is exploited for illicit purposes and how it can be brought under effective regulation. Drawing on the work of Ireland's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), Dr. Steven Meighan analyses 2,719 suspicious transaction reports (STRs) together with expert interviews and legislative developments to propose a new socio-technical framework for detecting and understanding crypto-laundering. With direct relevance for financial intelligence units, regulators, compliance teams and law enforcement worldwide, it brings together practical strategy and theoretical depth at the intersection of digital finance and financial crime.

Key Features

• A decade-long overview of money laundering and crypto-laundering.
• An in-depth case study of the Irish Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
• Analysis of the measures used to prevent, detect and prosecute cybercrime in Ireland.
• A new socio-technical systems framework applied to anti-money laundering.
• Empirical analysis grounded in 2,719 suspicious transaction reports.

Coverage

• The evolution of the global anti-money laundering (AML) system.
• Crypto-assets: technology, adoption and criminal exploitation.
• Regulating crypto-assets: AML systems and enforcement.
• Socio-technical systems theory in the AML context.
• Empirical analysis of crypto-related STRs and model building.

About the Author

Dr. Steven Meighan has extensive national and international experience investigating money laundering and organised crime. He served on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) evaluation team for Indonesia, assessing its financial-crime framework, and has worked with Europol, Interpol and the European Commission, as well as serving as a United Nations peacekeeper in Cyprus. A member of An Garda Síochána (the Irish National Police), he was called to the Irish Bar in 2015 and holds a PhD in Anti-Money Laundering.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. The Evolution of the Global AML System
3. Crypto-Assets: Technology, Adoption, and Criminal Exploitation
4. Regulating Crypto-Assets: AML Systems and Enforcement
5. Socio-Technical Systems Theory in AML Context
6. The Case of FIU Ireland
7. Analysis of Crypto-Related STRs
8. AML Socio-Technical Systems Models
9. Conclusion and Future Directions

Why buy this book?

This is one of the first empirically grounded studies to connect anti-money laundering practice with the realities of crypto-asset markets. For libraries, regulators and compliance functions building their reference collections on financial crime, it offers a rigorous, citable framework backed by real suspicious-transaction data — a durable hardcover reference for an area of rapidly evolving regulatory concern.

Keywords

Money Laundering, Anti-Money Laundering, Crypto-Assets, Crypto-Laundering, Financial Crime, Cybercrime, White Collar Crime, Financial Regulation, Compliance, Socio-Technical Systems Theory, Suspicious Transaction Reports, Financial Intelligence Unit, FIU Ireland, Financial Technology

Target Audience

Financial regulators, Compliance officers, Anti-money laundering analysts, Financial intelligence units, Law enforcement, Financial crime investigators, Banking and fintech professionals, Attorneys, Academics

Genre

Money Laundering, Anti-Money Laundering, Financial Crime, Crypto-Assets, Cybercrime, Financial Regulation, Compliance, Risk Management, Financial Technology

Q&A

Q: What is crypto-laundering, and how does it differ from traditional money laundering?

A: Crypto-laundering is the use of cryptocurrencies and other crypto-assets to disguise the origin of illicit funds. It differs from traditional laundering in its speed, pseudonymity and cross-border reach, which is why this book proposes a socio-technical framework that looks at both the technology and the human and institutional systems around it.

Q: How are crypto-assets regulated under anti-money laundering frameworks?

A: The book examines how AML systems and enforcement have been extended to crypto-assets, including obligations on virtual asset service providers and the role of suspicious transaction reporting, using Ireland as a detailed case study.

Q: What is a socio-technical approach to financial intelligence?

A: It is an analytical lens that treats detection of financial crime as the interaction of technology, people, processes and regulation rather than a purely technical problem — the central contribution of this study.

Q: What can suspicious transaction reports reveal about crypto-related financial crime?

A: Analysing 2,719 STRs filed with Ireland's FIU, the author shows what patterns, gaps and detection signals emerge in practice, offering empirical grounding for regulators and compliance teams.

Q: Where can I buy Money Laundering and Crypto-Assets by Steven Meighan?

A: This hardcover edition is available worldwide from CLNZ Books, with payment by credit card or PayPal and secure international courier delivery. The price includes worldwide shipping.

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