The article discusses a new legislative effort in Wyoming aimed at addressing fraudulent business activities linked to foreign adversaries, particularly those tied to North Korean entities. Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray’s office has been actively dissolving businesses that submitted false or fraudulent documents, with a focus on companies owned by foreign adversaries such as North Korea, which were allegedly involved in money laundering and identity theft.
The North Korean companies—Culture Box LLC, Next Nets LLC, and Blackish Tech LLC—were dissolved in May of the previous year after the Wyoming Secretary of State’s office found they had filed fraudulent information, aided by consultation with the FBI. This quick dissolution was only made possible by the fraudulent documents; otherwise, Wyoming’s current laws would have limited immediate action. This issue led to the introduction of House Bill 69, which seeks to allow the Secretary of State’s office to dissolve companies owned by foreign adversaries more swiftly, closing what officials see as a loophole in the statute.
The bill, which received unanimous approval from the House Corporations, Elections, and Political Subdivisions Committee, would align Wyoming’s law with the federal list of foreign adversaries, which currently includes countries like China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela. This bill is part of a broader effort to combat fraud and illicit activities tied to Wyoming’s increasingly popular LLC formation process, often used to conceal the identity of individuals behind shell companies. The “Cowboy Cocktail” refers to an arrangement in which a shell company controls a trust, making it difficult to trace ownership, and has been used by individuals such as Russian oligarchs.
Since implementing a process last year to address false business filings, the Secretary of State’s office has dissolved about 60 businesses for submitting fraudulent information. Gray and Rubino, the Secretary of State’s Policy Director, are enthusiastic about HB 69 and see it as an important tool to further combat fraud and foreign interference in Wyoming’s business landscape.