White-collar criminals are not only found in the political arena, they are also found operating within private family businesses or by association. Their practices are considered financial crimes that endanger the integrity of the company where they work. Reading and knowing about the profile of a white-collar criminal will keep us forewarned for eventual encounters. So with the aim of promoting the prevention of these crimes in the business environment, we will explain a little about white-collar criminals.

What is the profile of a white-collar criminal?

The term "white collar" was first used in 1930 by Edwin Sutherland to end the stigma of poverty-related crime. Thus, it highlighted the impunity that important people receive in comparison to the common citizen. So this concept refers to people who have a certain respectability in their environment, although this is not decisive. These are intelligent people with a lot of emotional control who measure their actions to avoid being caught red-handed in crime.

Their practices are usually involved in scandals of corruption, money laundering, bribery, fraud, etc. So they are commonly public officials, people with important positions, or workers with access to important information.

What do white-collar criminals do?

This type of crime is characterized by being carried out in companies with a large number of financial transactions. In the purchase of bonds, currencies and other assets for commercial exchange, price adjustments are made for the benefit of a few. This means that invoice prices are increased, fictitious jobs are declared or contracts are outsourced to obtain extra income.

These criminals commit the crime in the exercise of their profession, so it is sometimes difficult to detect their movements. They usually alter documents, forge signatures, steal identities, forge checks and use other fraudulent methods to obtain money and keep it in circulation. In this sense, it is advisable to monitor the management positions within a company, at the same time that a compliance plan is developed in the organization.

Tax havens and cryptoassets hidden on the Internet

Today the internet has become an important tool for the movement of assets around the world. While tax havens help to avoid tax liabilities, the internet is displacing traditional banking when it comes to safeguarding capital. Not only is it possible to maintain anonymity in transactions, but digital assets are performing better than other types of assets such as wealth.

These are the mechanisms in which white-collar criminals hide their capital. Tax havens are territories with favorable economic policies for foreigners to join the banking sector. And cryptoassets appear as a digital alternative to traditional financial assets and capital. Both guarantee their users the necessary confidentiality to avoid scandals and the initiation of legal proceedings for embezzlement or tax evasion.

Tax havens have been one of the favorite mechanisms for the safekeeping of large sums of money, since they enjoy tax advantages in territories where no commercial activities are carried out. On the other hand, cryptoassets are digital assets that can be kept in digital wallets that guarantee the security of the capital invested there. Cryptocurrencies are gradually being regulated in different countries, so people who have them in the future will have to declare them for tax purposes.

Important cases of white-collar crime in the world

The Worldcom accounting fraud case is an important example of how a white-collar criminal can affect a company's reputation. This scandal became public as one of the largest bankruptcies witnessed in the United States. There, nearly $4 billion in irregular expenses were accounted for and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against the company. Its shareholders lost nearly $180 billion and thousands of people lost their jobs in the telecommunications industry.

Another important crime was that of Jerome Kerviel in France. This person worked as a financial trader in a trading team of the Delta One bank in Paris. He managed to collect 4.9 billion euros in fraudulent activities in different French banks for which he was demonized in the public opinion, at the same time he was revered by Parisian anarchists. Kerviel was fully aware of the banks' computer systems and was able to carry out operations and hide them under false transactions.

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