Smart Sanctions: West Targets P&I Clubs to Limit Russian Shipping
The European Union and the United States are now targeting maritime protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance clubs to limit Russian shipping capacity and cap the price of its oil, meaning we’re finally beginning to see some smart sanctions for a stupid war.P&I clubs are maritime insurance groups that specialize in open-ended, large-risk claims. P&I insurance is a requirement for all heavy cargo and container vessels. Under the new sanctions, European P&I clubs can no longer offer insurance to a vessel carrying Russian oil at a price higher than $60 a barrel.Since February 2022…
Money Laundering: Not Just for Drug Cartels Anymore
The dirty money can and does wash ashore on the waterfront. Despite all the jokes about having a washing machine full of soapy hundred dollar bills, the U.S. Government takes money laundering very, very seriously. Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws include substantial fines and possible prison time and places the onus for recognizing and reporting money laundering squarely on the shoulders of financial institutions. And yet, we don’t necessarily associate ‘dirty money’ with the mundane world of moving cargo or people from point ‘a’ to point ‘b.’ If so, that’s probably a mistake.
Moore Stephens Envisages Increased Pressure for Incipient Impairment in Shipping
Accountant and shipping industry adviser Moore Stephens says it expects to see an increase in the sort of pressure recently exerted on shipping companies by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to make disclosure when the market value of their vessels is less than their carrying value. The pressure for this type of disclosure, often referred to as ‘incipient impairment’, has been reflected in the 2011 filings of many SEC registrants. Moore Stephens partner David Chopping says…
Al Capone's Yacht in New Panama Canal Role
Some 270 ships pass each week through the Panama Canal, but one now gives tourists the chance to experience the storied waterway on the Isla Morada, Al Capone's legendary rum-runner, says a report in the New Zealand Herald. The wooden ship, famous for smuggling liquor for the US mobster during the prohibition era, turned 100 this year and has been refurbished for guided tours of the canal's locks and shoreline wildlife. The 94-tonne, 96-metre-long Isla Morada began sailing in March 1912 under the name the "Santana," and has since earned the distinction of having passed through the Canal more than any other as the oldest vessel still on duty.
