Banks Working Against Human Trafficking

The importance of collaboration across society to combat human trafficking is increasingly acknowledged in all kinds of sectors. With anti-human trafficking training taking place among law enforcement, the hospitality sector, the transport industry, and the teaching profession to name a few, it is no surprise that this trend is now taking root within the banking sector.

Eastern Eye reported the launch of a new joint initiative of the Thomson Reuters Foundation and the European Bankers Alliance earlier this month to train bank employees about human trafficking and how to spot the signs. The project has involved the development of a toolkit, which includes case studies of human trafficking and “red flag indicators” covering customer spending, flows of money between accounts, and suspicious behaviour observed in bank branches. This resource has been shared throughout the Bankers Alliance whose membership includes Barclays, HSBC, Western Union, Standard Chartered, Deutsche Bank, Santander, UBS, and Commerzbank.

Nick Lewis, the head of Intelligence and Investigations at Standard Chartered said: “This opens up a whole new domain of engagement and
identification of trafficking victims … and a whole new potential avenue for victims to say ‘I’m not okay’”.

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