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Money Laundering & Terrorist Financing

Over 20 years of articles and reference material

A page dedicated to global, regional, UK and US anti-money laundering developments and initiatives.

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PwC’s ‘EMEA AML Survey’ 2026 finds that despite the EU’s push for AML harmonisation, most firms remain unprepared, facing higher costs, data issues, and major operational disruption ahead of 2027

April 21, 2026

The survey finds that compliance costs are expected to rise significantly, particularly due to stricter customer due diligence (CDD), beneficial ownership verification, and enhanced transaction monitoring requirements. Firms also report that fragmented legacy systems and poor data quality remain major obstacles to effective implementation. While technology—especially AI and advanced analytics—is seen as critical to meeting regulatory expectations, many organisations are still in early stages of digital transformation…

The Isle of Man’s 2025 Terrorist Financing Assessment shows a medium-low risk, primarily from cross-border activity, with robust AML/CFT controls effectively containing exposure

April 20, 2026

The assessment analyses how terrorist financing risks arise from both domestic and international factors, including the Island’s role as an international financial centre and the potential misuse of legal entities, financial services, and cross-border flows. Findings support prioritisation of resources, improved data and intelligence sharing, and enhanced controls across higher-risk sectors to strengthen the effectiveness of the AML/CFT regime…

MAS consults on a prudential framework for banks’ exposure to cryptoassets on permissionless blockchains, aiming to balance innovation with financial stability through appropriate capital and risk controls

April 18, 2026

The consultation considers whether cryptoassets on public, permissionless blockchains—previously treated as inherently high risk—could qualify for more favourable regulatory classification if they meet specific conditions on governance, transparency and risk management. MAS aims to align its framework with Basel cryptoasset standards, balancing financial-stability concerns with support for innovation, while ensuring banks hold capital commensurate with the risks posed by different types of crypto exposures…

PRA’s Business Plan 2026/27 sets out a risk-based agenda to strengthen resilience, enhance oversight of emerging risks, and reinforce data-driven supervision and FC controls while supporting growth

April 17, 2026

It also strengthens expectations around operational resilience, including enhanced reporting of incidents and third-party dependencies, while advancing work on AI, cryptoassets, and data-driven supervision through streamlined reporting and improved analytics, alongside reforms to accountability frameworks such as the Senior Managers & Certification Regime, ultimately reinforcing the need for firms to maintain strong financial crime controls, high-quality data, and proportionate risk management as regulation evolves to support growth and innovation…

FATF Ministers at the US Ministerial meeting pledge for stronger global action against illicit finance, prioritising fraud disruption, risk-based enforcement, and faster FATF standards implementation 

April 17, 2026

They highlighted the growing harm caused by money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing, and pledged to use the full AML/CFT toolkit to disrupt fraud schemes involving scam centres, legal structures, virtual assets, and AI. Ministers also backed responsible financial innovation, improved payment transparency, stronger cross-border cooperation, and stricter peer reviews to ensure effective global enforcement and accountability…

US DoJ reveals a UK national pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy, hacking at least a dozen U.S. companies via SMS phishing and stealing over $8M in virtual currency

April 17, 2026

Authorities say Buchanan and his co-conspirators impersonated companies and IT providers to trick employees into entering credentials on fake login pages, enabling access to corporate systems and sensitive data across sectors including technology, telecoms, cloud services, and outsourcing firms. The group then leveraged stolen information to target individual victims’ crypto accounts, bypassing two-factor authentication through SIM-swapping attacks that transferred control of victims’ phone numbers to devices under their control…

CBUAE updates its AML/CFT/CPF guidance for licensed FIs, strengthening risk-based controls, due diligence, and monitoring to boost compliance and combat FC more effectively

April 16, 2026

The guidance introduces enhanced expectations across key areas including customer due diligence, correspondent banking, trade-based money laundering, and proliferation financing risk management, supported by more structured training and governance frameworks. Reforms require institutions to adopt continuous, enterprise-wide risk assessment and more effective transaction monitoring, reinforcing the UAE’s broader strategy to improve AML/CFT effectiveness and align with FATF standards…

OECD’s 2026 G20 Tax report highlights progress on BEPS reforms and the global minimum tax, alongside efforts to enhance tax transparency, simplify rules, and strengthen global coordination

April 16, 2026

The report outlines progress on key G20 priorities, including the rollout of the Two-Pillar solution to address tax challenges from digitalisation, continued implementation of BEPS minimum standards and expanded tax-transparency initiatives such as automatic exchange of financial account information. It also highlights ongoing work to improve tax certainty, modernise tax administration and support developing countries, while emphasising the need for continued international coordination to tackle cross-border tax avoidance, evasion…

EBA seeks feedback on its Reporting Framework 4.3 draft technical package, enhancing AML and third-country branch reporting standards to support AMLA supervision – comments due 10 May 2026

April 16, 2026

EBA launches a consultation on its draft Reporting Framework 4.3, covering AML and third-country branch reporting, introducing updated technical standards, validation rules, and DPM/XBRL taxonomies, including new requirements to support AMLA supervision and CRD-aligned reporting, with first reference dates in 2026–2027; stakeholders are invited to provide feedback by 10 May 2026 ahead of final publication in June 2026, which will further refine AML reporting templates and validation rules…

U.S. authorities, under ‘Operation PowerOFF’, conduct coordinated cyber operations to dismantle global DDoS-for-hire services enabling illegal attacks on websites and critical systems worldwide

April 16, 2026

The US DoJ, along with international law enforcement partners, seizes multiple domains and infrastructure linked to botnet operators, disrupts backend servers, and launches a global awareness campaign to deter cybercrime. The action targets services allegedly used to attack schools, government systems, gaming platforms, and critical infrastructure, underscoring ongoing efforts to combat cybercrime networks that threaten internet stability and security…

FinCEN reports its Rapid Response Program has intercepted nearly $2B in cyber-fraud losses by rapidly coordinating across jurisdictions to trace, freeze, and recover funds stolen by global scam networks

April 15, 2026

The programme operates through partnerships with U.S. law enforcement and foreign financial intelligence units to identify and halt fraudulent cross-border transactions before funds are dissipated. Financial institutions play a key role by promptly reporting suspicious activity and triggering rapid intervention, with effectiveness highest when incidents are reported within tight timeframes…

AUSTRAC flags a major AML blind spot in wealth management, with 98% of firms filing no suspicious matter reports in 2025, signalling serious gaps in detecting financial crime risks

April 15, 2026

Briefing highlights that most firms report no high-risk customers or suspicious matters despite evidence of exposure to higher-risk scenarios, indicating weak risk identification and reporting practices. It also emphasises vulnerabilities linked to digital channels, cyber-enabled fraud, and misuse of customer identities, and calls for stronger controls and more effective AML/CFT reporting to improve detection…

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