Cutomer advised he is buying a plane for cash? Over $300,000 in
$100's. He advised that the seller wants all cash. SAR reportable? A CTR will be filed of course. Teller advised that Customer has bought another plane,but paid by check not cash. Suggested that he wire the funds, but the seller wants cash. Seems suspicious, but is a SAR warranted? No info on seller, yet. Responses or suggestions appreciated.

Does his occupation relate to the need for planes or do you believe that the planes are recreational use?

Sellers of automobiles and large dollar items often require cash in light of all the scams that have taken place in the last few years. I would be scared to death to walk out of a bank with $300,000. But we have had customers insist on doing similar things.

Teller advised the customer operates a muffler and brake shop down thes street from the bank. A recreational user would be my guess. How much plane can you buy for $300,0000 anyway. Back to my original post, is this substance enough for a SAR? Teller says he's a legit businessman buying a plane.

We can't tell you "yes" or "no". You need to investigate and make a determination. If you have a lot of facts & opinions, we might be able to help you more, but so far I don't have enough info to say one way or the other.

The purpose of the SAR is to notify authorities if you have a transaction which you think is suspicious.
So that is your answer - if you are not comfortable with it, then file the SAR.

I think if a seller wanted "cash" - he would accept a wire transfer.
Who would want $300,000.00 in physical cash?
It tells me that the proceeds of the sale are not going back into a bank.
I think the transaction is suspicious.
Don't overthink it.
IMHO.

Plus, where did the $300,000 come from? I think that would be an important part of the equation. That's a lot of mufflers and brake pads??

I do not think that it is suspicious for the seller to not accept proceeds from the sale by wire transfer. In todays environment, I don't think I would give my account information to a perfect stranger, when I am selling something. There are just two many scams out there to trust people today, like we used to be able to. (Hope that statement doesn't date me)

Funds from deposit of check to the account. Check has cleared bank. No info on the seller, yet. Would this be an "Other" on line 35? Thanks to all.

Deposit of check - from who and where. Sounds like a strawman purchase going on.

Yes, - it would be Other in 35.

From his business account at another bank. What is a straw purchase?

One who purchases property that is, in turn, conveyed to another for the purpose of concealing the identity of the eventual purchaser.

Straw Man
One who purchases property that is, in turn, conveyed to another for the purpose of concealing the identity of the eventual purchaser.

"From his business account at another bank."



So that sounds alright - so we are back to the cash to the seller which does not make sense.

The move of the funds from the other bank to yours, followed by a cash withdrawal of this magnitude, is another red flag. Each move of the funds away from their source is another clue that this could be a number of things, some of them suspect. But none of us knows your customer as well as your bank does. You'll have to be the final judge on whether this is SAR-worthy.

More info is coming in from the branch. The deposit is from his own business account at another bank payable to him. The deposit was a week ago. We learned that he will get a discount of $50k if paid in cash to seller. We also learned from him that the seller had suffered a loss on a sale with a cashier's check. Supervisor advises that he is a reputable businessman buying a plane and paying cash to get the discount. I'm thinking before we let him walk out of the bank, we have him sign a hold harmless and release agreement, in lieu of him coming back to the bank claiming the cash is short. Any thoughts on this.

Why did this customer deposit a check from his account at another bank to your institution, just to withdraw the cash in the end? Couldn't he have just went to the other institution to make the withdrawal.

I agree with John. In the end, you will need to make the decision. Has the customer provided any information on the seller or plane being purchased?

"I'm thinking before we let him walk out of the bank, we have him sign a hold harmless and release agreement, in lieu of him coming back to the bank claiming the cash is short. Any thoughts on this."


When I have had customers leave with large amounts of cash, we took them into an office, with two staff members, and had him count the money in front of us.
That should be sufficient.

"We also learned from him that the seller had suffered a loss on a sale with a cashier's check."



Wire transfer.
As immediate as cash and no one gets burned.

Have you checked to see if your bank has a policy on how much cash a customer can carry?
We would not allow someone to walk out with that amount of cash.

For a guarantee of good funds and safety of delivery, wire would be the way to go here. Your customer could even have all the details pre-arranged with your (or another) bank, awaiting telephone confirmation that he had seen the plane and documentation and was satisfied to release the transfer. The seller could arrange to have his bank confirm receipt before a third party turned over the signed documents. Sort of James Bond, but with this much at stake, it would be worth the effort, I think.

The cash deal just bothers me on so many levels.