In popular fiction, art and antiquities are often depicted as a means for criminals to launder their ill-gotten gains. In recent years, real-world examples of this include investigations into the alleged purchase of inter alia Egyptian antiquities and works by Picasso and Basquiat by criminals for money-laundering purposes. 

Perhaps the most notorious criminal thought to have laundered funds through art works is Pablo Escobar. So, if the art world is known to be vulnerable to money launderers, many people might be surprised to hear that dealers of art and antiquities were only fully brought into EU anti-money launde...