In the Asian Crime Century
The new publication discussing organised crime and corruption in Asia
Welcome to this new publication in 2023, the Asian Crime Century.
The Asian Crime Century talks about crime in Asia and how it affects doing business in the region and with the region.
Much has been written about ‘The Asian Century’ as the region has a growing impact on the rest of the world, economically as the centre of trade flows and demographically with increasingly wealthy populations who travel and trade across the globe.
McKinsey & Co reported in 2019 in ‘The Future of Asia’ that by 2040 the Asia share of global real GDP is expected to be 52%, its share of global consumption 39%, and its share of the world’s middle classes 54%. McKinsey identified that global cross border flows towards trade, capital, people, knowledge, transport, culture, resources, and the environment are all shifting towards Asia. This is the Asian Century.
What studies of the economies of Asia do not show is how crime in the region is changing and how this impacts doing business. As economic growth across Asia has generated increased wealth in the past several decades, so have business opportunities for criminals in their own countries as well as on a transnational basis across the region.
The Asian Crime Century will document the nature and extent of crime and corruption in Asia, with occasional commentaries on how this impacts business.
In China, the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ has created an international diaspora of Chinese entrepreneurs and allowed opportunities for new criminal enterprises. Online fraud, gambling, and related people trafficking involving Chinese gangs have become rife in Asia.
In Hong Kong, major Triad Societies (criminal secret societies) started to diversify their international business and investments before 1997 and some have become international organisations. The city has been a hub for capital flight from China, often involving the proceeds of corruption from the Mainland.
In Macau, the astounding growth of casino gambling after the introduction of US operators in 2004 has led to an eruption of organised crime based around ‘junkets’ (Triad dominated groups organising customers from China) that has touched Australia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and the Pacific Islands.
In India, several major organised crime groups active in extortion, gambling, smuggling, and drug trafficking have long standing connections to Islamist terrorism and were implicated in the terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 1993 and 2008.
In the Philippines, sex trafficking, forced prostitution and child pornography remain major industries. Online gambling and betting have also arisen to become a new global business, with strong connections to Chinese organised crime groups.
In Thailand, sex trafficking has also been a major trade for decades, but the country is also a regional hub for weapons dealing (sometimes with the collusion of Thai police and military personnel).
In all of Asia, people trafficking and related slavery is rife for the purposes forced labour in other countries as well as for prostitution. Asia also remains a central source of supply for illegal drugs (both finished product as well as precursors).
The profits from this wide range of criminal enterprises across Asia flow through the financial systems and make up the money laundering that has consumed the banking and financial services industry and make the job of compliance officers so hard. To manage risk and compliance for business in Asia, we need to understand crime in Asia.
The first Asian Crime Century bulletin is coming soon. Welcome to the Asian Crime Century.
Best wishes,
Martin Purbrick.