PRODUCTION: Financial Times Film
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRODUCTION COUTRY: Italy, USA, United Kingdom
DATE: June 2024
LENGTH: 39′
DIRECTED BY: Ben Marino

What links money laundering in China to the global fentanyl epidemic? This investigation, produced by the Financial Times video team, uncovers how the outflow of capital from the People’s Republic of China is entangled with the operations of global organized crime, from Mexican cartels to the Italian mafia. The documentary reveals how Chinese financial brokers have built highly efficient systems to move illicit funds, using platforms like WeChat and intricate underground banking networks to facilitate drug traffickers’ operations. This phenomenon not only fuels the spread of fentanyl but also raises urgent questions about the vulnerabilities of the global financial system.