Heine Examines Organized Crime’s Impact on Chile’s Financial System
Ambassador Jorge Heine, former Research Professor at Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, recently weighed in on a growing debate in Chile following the discovery of an $85 million money-laundering network tied to the transnational criminal organization Tren de Aragua. The case, which allegedly involved the use of bank accounts across multiple financial institutions, has intensified calls to reform Chile’s strict bank secrecy laws—some of the most restrictive in the world. In comments to The Dialogue’s “Financial Services Advisor,” Heine argued that the scandal challenges longstanding assumptions about how organized crime operates within the financial system.
Heine noted that defenders of Chile’s bank secrecy framework have often argued that criminal groups do not rely on formal banking channels. However, he suggested that the recent case demonstrates otherwise. He said,
One feature that is often peddled to promote Santiago’s attractiveness for financial transactions is its bank secrecy laws. As it turns out, it is international organized crime that has taken due notice of it. On this issue, the government of President José Antonio Kast finds itself between a rock and a hard place.
He added that requiring judicial authorization to access banking information can make financial crime investigations more difficult, as authorities often need evidence of wrongdoing before obtaining the information that could reveal it.
According to Heine, the case presents a political challenge for President Kast, whose administration has prioritized fighting organized crime while also maintaining support from economic sectors that strongly favor strict financial privacy protections. While the government has proposed increasing resources for Chile’s Financial Analysis Unit, Heine suggested that additional funding alone may not be enough. The money-laundering scandal has renewed questions about whether Chile’s current banking secrecy rules strike the right balance between protecting privacy and enabling authorities to combat increasingly sophisticated transnational criminal networks.
A former research professor at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, Jorge Heine is a diplomat, international relations scholar, and lawyer. He is currently a non-resident fellow at the Quincy Institute. He has served as an ambassador of Chile to China, India, and South Africa. Heine has written over fifteen books, including The Non-Aligned World: Striking Out in an Era of Great Power Competition (2025), which provides insights on how the Global South can navigate the changing diplomatic landscape amid the U.S.-China rivalry.