With support from the Fund, Lourdes Medrano dug into the impact of new federal rules intended to crack down on cartel money-laundering – which are devastating small businesses along the U.S./Mexico border that immigrant families rely on to pay rent and support each other. Last year, the federal government required any businesses providing financial services in the region to report transactions over $200; previously, the threshold was $10,000. Medrano reported that the change is hitting small grocery stores and other businesses hard; people use these businesses to pay bills and buy money orders, but the reporting requirement has driven many customers away.
Grantee reports that U.S. effort to stop cartel money-laundering devastated mom-and-pop businesses instead
