Nearly anywhere in the world, people of any gender, age or background can fall prey to human traffickers. In their methods, the perpetrators are just as brutal as they are cunning: sometimes they blackmail their victims, and sometimes they lure victims with false promises of a better future. At the heart of this crime is financial gain. Globally, the annual profits from such business total an estimated 236 billion US dollars.

Trafficking in human beings is now the third most common criminal activity and one of the most widespread sources of human rights violations. And with new forms such as illegal adoption, forced surrogacy and organ trafficking, it is a growing problem.

But these perpetrators also leave a trail. As with other types of organised crime, financial flows can provide important evidence that can help uncover criminal networks. The perpetrators pay for their victims’ transport and hotel accommodation; they transfer the money they gain from exploiting victims to bank accounts, and they often bribe public authorities to facilitate their operations.

Since they carry out many of their transactions through banks and other financial services providers, these institutions can and should play a key role in the fight against human trafficking.

Transaction patterns are changing

Many institutions have already recognised the need for action and taken steps to improve their controls. They have put more effective procedures in place to identify possible instances of human trafficking by tracking unusual patterns in payments. Unfortunately, however, this is often not enough. The perpetrators are very shrewd, as they frequently change their modi operandi.

The attempts to use automated detection based on historical data are not always successful. Moreover, perpetrators are integrating hawala banking, cryptocurrencies and prepaid cards into their payment methods.

How should we respond to this? BaFin is encouraging intelligence-led analyses and targeted investigations. Consequently, it will be particularly important that financial institutions increase their staffing and provide ongoing training.

Neither the public nor the private sector can tackle human trafficking alone. Strategic cooperation, including through public-private partnerships, is essential in the fight against human trafficking. To be effective, financial institutions and public authorities must share emerging trends in trafficking, including those forms that are often overlooked, and work together by exploring innovative strategies that go beyond traditional awareness-raising interventions.