FinCEN: "Now, where are those papers?"
Before he left FinCEN, their expert on hawala was not widely recognised. Amazingly, they have redone his work to comply with the USA PATRIOT Act. And he does not even warrant a mention.
FinCEN used to have an expert in hawala. Patrick Jost was one of the raft of senior people who walked away from FinCEN as it began to crumble. Working with others from around the world, he had written reports about the use of alternative remittance systems. The importance of those reports is considerable: they are widely quoted, including by the US Attorney's department in analysis of terrorist financing, even though that was not the focus of the reports.
In Congress earlier this year, Jost was referred to as "one of the few people in America who understand hawala." The point was made that his departure was a significant loss. Since leaving FinCEN other government departments have called him in to explain it to them. He lectures about the subject in the US and Europe.
Yet when FinCEN's new report on hawala, available from the FinCEN website, was produced, organisations that have asked Jost to explain it to them appear in the list of acknowledgments but Jost himself does not.
The lack of direct input from Jost means that the report lacks his particular insight. He understands the fundamentals of the system. He is able to explain how it works in a simple and effective manner. The report covers most of the topics Jost talks about but in a relatively superficial way.
FinCEN sent its staff out into the field to speak to people. It could have sent someone about a kilometre down the road to Jost's Washington home where he holds masses of information on the use and abuse of hawala.
But that would have meant acknowledging his expertise. And that would have been a loss of face. The fact that Jost is recognised outside FinCEN seems to mean that they can now no longer talk to him, at least not officially.
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