I was told that a while back Bulgari (and probably some other high-end jewelers) operated one of the largest illicit money transfer networks - primarily for bribery.
Want to bribe a public official? Give his wife a $100k bracelet, and mention that it can be returned anywhere in the world for CASH (less a 10% “restocking fee” of course). Then you might mention how nice it would be to spend a weekend in Geneva - and coincidentally there is a branch of that jeweler just down the street from some very discreet Swiss bankers (back when they were discreet)...
Want to bribe a public official? Give his wife a $100k bracelet, and mention that it can be returned anywhere in the world for CASH (less a 10% “restocking fee” of course). Then you might mention how nice it would be to spend a weekend in Geneva - and coincidentally there is a branch of that jeweler just down the street from some very discreet Swiss bankers (back when they were discreet)...