FinCEN issues GTO for the southwest border of the US

This GTO mandates that all money services businesses (MSBs) operating in 30 specific ZIP codes across California and Texas near the border must submit Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) to FinCEN for cash transactions exceeding a threshold of USD 200.

Combating criminal syndicates in the US is one of the Administration's priorities. In February 2025, the US Departments of the Treasury and State designated eight organisations, including six illegal trafficking organisations based in Mexico, as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs). These designations will empower the US to take additional measures to block individuals and entities associated with these groups from accessing the US financial system. The terms of the General Treasury Order (GTO) will take effect 30 days after the order is published in the Federal Register and will remain in effect for 179 days thereafter.

The order includes the following ZIP codes across seven counties in California and Texas: 

• Imperial County, California: 92231, 92249, 92281, 92283;

• San Diego County, California: 91910, 92101, 92113, 92117, 92126, 92154, 92173;

• Cameron County, Texas: 78520, 78521;

• El Paso County, Texas: 79901, 79902, 79903, 79905, 79907, 79935;

• Hidalgo County, Texas: 78503, 78557, 78572, 78577, 78596;

• Maverick County, Texas: 78852• Webb County, Texas: 78040, 78041, 78043, 78045, 78046.

Other news from FinCEN

In November 2024, FinCEN issued a warning aimed at supporting financial institutions in detecting fraud schemes that involve deepfake media.

This alert, from FinCEN, was based on an analysis of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), open-source reports, and information gathered from law enforcement. It highlighted fraud schemes related to the use of deepfake media created with generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools, providing insights into the typologies associated with these entities. Furthermore, the alert outlined red flag indicators to assist in recognising and reporting suspicious activities and emphasised the reporting obligations of financial institutions under the BSA.