Anti-laundering unit goes off-grid, fraying Afghan ties to global finance

FILE PHOTO: A money changer holds a stack of Afghan currency on a street in central Kabul April 2, 2014. REUTERS/Tim Wimborne/Files/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - A unit in Afghanistan's central bank leading a 15-year effort to counter illicit funding flows has halted operations, four staff members said, threatening to hasten the country's slide out of the global financial system.

Since 2006, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center of Afghanistan (FinTRACA) has gathered intelligence on thousands of suspicious transactions and helped convict smugglers and terrorist financiers, according to its website.