NK laundered millions through Macau bank

Banco Delta Asia, the Macao bank accused of laundering counterfeit and illegally earned money for Pyongyang, acted as a conduit for tens and possibly hundreds of millions of dollars in cash flowing to and from North Korea last year, according to documents obtained by the Financial Times. The documents, plus new revelations about gold sales through BDA, suggest the Macao bank was much more important to North Korea than realized, the newspaper reported. The documents support allegations made by the US in September last year that ultimately led to the collapse of six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions. BDA accounts with links to North Korea, containing about $24 million, were frozen after US Treasury officials labelled the Macao bank a "primary money-laundering concern". After 16 months of investigation, the Treasury has yet to present evidence. It has also stressed that the financial actions are entirely separate from the nuclear issue.