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Domi Benton

Domi Benton

Research student

School of Law and Politics

Overview

Having graduated in Law with first-class honours, I worked in the industry before commencing my part-time doctoral studies here at Cardiff University. With extensive experience of working in public and private sectors, I gained invaluable knowledge and network allowing me to pursue research on the use of distributed ledger technology in suspicious activity reporting within counter-terrorism financing.

In 2022, I was invited to advise Themis on the technological evolution of terrorist-financing. I since co-authored a book chapter with my supervisor, Prof Nic Ryder, on terrorism financing and the Financial Action Task Force, and I have an upcoming publication relating to counter-terrorism financing in Iran.

I am also part of the Early Career Researchers Editorial Board for Journal of Economic Criminology and a guest blogger on www.findaPhD.com 

Outside of work and my PhD, you will most certainly find me in a local coffee shop.

 

Publication

2023

Book sections

Research

Thesis

Terrorism and Why it Works: A Critical Outline to Using and Regulating Distributed Ledger Technology as a Means of Regulatory Compliance in Counter Terrorism Financing

Thesis overview

The signs of cryptography-based technology being utilised for terrorist-related activities were seen as early as the events of September 2001. From encrypted messages to the use of Bitcoin, which is built on foundations of cryptography, the technological basis behind cryptography and its utilisation for illicit purposes had since evolved; the last decade saw an increase in cryptocurrencies being used for terrorism financing (TF), including the Paris 2015 attacks and the Capitol riots of 2021, the latter of which is linked to approx. 522k USD worth of Bitcoin donations to domestic extremists. The UNDOC estimated that of the 800 billion to 2 trillion USD that is laundered globally per annum, 2.8 billion USD is estimated to have been laundered via cryptocurrencies in 2019 alone. However, owing to the emerging number of cryptocurrencies, some of which offer more attractive levels of deficient traceability, it remains difficult to establish exactly how many attacks are financed via this method, and precisely how much is laundered for TF purposes.    

Presently, 83% of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) member states are non-complaint with its recommendations with regards to CTF. One of the main tools in tackling TF, the reporting of suspicious transactions (SARs), is heavily reliant on manual involvement which has an undesirable impact on efficiency with regard to the time taken to file and process a SAR, in addition to the issues surrounding the subjectiveness of what a ‘suspicious’ transaction entails. The use of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) has the potential for overseeing financial transactions for counter terrorism financing (CTF) compliance purposes. With the use of Regulatory Technology, the need for manual oversight of filing a SAR can be alleviated, whilst facilitating organisations in meeting their regulatory obligations more efficiently. 

 

Thesis objective

My thesis focuses on the extent to which the UK, the US and the UAE meet the FATF benchmark and how the implementaton of DLT within the SAR regime would improve the current regulatory landscape.

 

 

Funding sources

Self-funded

Supervisors

Nicholas Ryder

Nicholas Ryder

Professor of Law

Henry Hillman

Henry Hillman

Lecturer

Petula Thomas-Jones

Petula Thomas-Jones

Lecturer in Law

Contact Details

Email BentonD1@cardiff.ac.uk

Research themes

Specialisms

  • Financial Crime
  • Counter terrorism financing
  • distributed ledger technology/blockchain