Third of young people would 'consider' being a money mule

Figures produced by FraudSMART, an awareness initiative by the Banking & Payments Federation of Ireland (Bpfi), show that €44.1m has been laundered through money mules in the three years to June 2024.

More than €44m has been laundered through ‘money mule’ accounts in Ireland over the last three years, the majority belonging to young people, some as young as 14, figures show.

A survey conducted by the banking and payments industry found that almost half of 18-24-year-olds either have been approached, or know someone who has, about the use of their accounts to transfer money.