The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says it has seen a sharp rise in account closures tied to suspected money mule activity involving people in their 40s. The regulator reports that more cases it identifies relate to this age group, indicating an expanding or shifting profile of those suspected of facilitating financial crime through compromised bank accounts.
The reporting highlights the FCA’s use of account-closure data to identify suspected mule activity. While the sources focus on the same overall trend—more closures linked to people in their 40s—they provide limited additional detail on the underlying offences, the number of affected accounts, or whether the change reflects new recruitment methods, increased detection, or other factors. Overall, the emphasis is on the FCA’s warning that mule behaviour is occurring across wider demographics than traditionally assumed.
Both outlets present the development as a supervisory and enforcement signal based on trends in account closures linked to suspected mule activity, without attributing responsibility to any individual.
