The fugazi papers, or on the importance of false invoicing for organised crime and the money laundering market
An analysis of drivers, mechanisms and actors
False invoicing—or invoices for fictitious transactions (IFT)—is a widespread yet understudied financial crime technique that plays a pivotal role in contemporary organised crime and money laundering ecosystems, such as in trade based money laundering schemes (TBML). Despite being commonly treated as a technical tax offence, IFT functions as a flexible, multi-purpose offence enabling a wide array of serious and organised crimes, such as laundering of criminal proceeds and products, corruption, the concealment of extortion and usury, the creation of slush funds, tax evasion, embezzlement, and illicit labour supply. Drawing on a qualitative analysis of 207 recent Italian investigations (2024–2025), this paper examines the drivers, mechanisms, sectors, jurisdictions, and actors involved in IFT schemes.
