Log in/out

Our extensive knowledge at your fingertips

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.

Browse the resource database or make a sub-selection:

Menu

Latest editions

Search

U

UNODC’s Myanmar Opium Survey 2025 reveals that opium poppy cultivation has surged to a decade-high, driven by conflict, economic hardship, and shifting global drug supply dynamics

December 3, 2025

The 2025 Myanmar Opium Survey 2025 finds that poppy cultivation increased by 17% year-on-year — from 45,200 to 53,100 hectares — marking the largest area under cultivation since 2015. Although yield per hectare fell due to instability, overall production edged up to about 1,010 metric tons, underscoring Myanmar’s continued status as the world’s primary source of illicit opium and raising serious concerns over renewed heroin supply to global markets…

OECD’s 2025 Enhanced Monitoring Report finds progress in tax transparency across 25 jurisdictions, but key gaps in information-sharing and implementation still hinder the fight against tax evasion

December 2, 2025

The 2025 Enhanced Monitoring Report by the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes reviews 25 jurisdictions under the standard for Exchange of Information on Request (EOIR), assessing their legal regimes, practical exchange performance, and follow-up on previous peer-review recommendations. It finds that while many countries have addressed earlier deficiencies—improving access to beneficial-ownership, accounting, banking and tax-information records—some still fall short on responsiveness, timeliness, or capacity to deliver requested information, underscoring ongoing risks of secrecy, tax abuse…

FATF updates its 2023 Consolidated processes and procedures for AML/CFT mutual evaluations and follow-ups, establishing a unified, stricter, and more transparent global framework 

December 2, 2025

The Universal Procedures define standardised processes including assessor selection, confidentiality and conflict-of-interest safeguards, consistent timelines, quality control and uniform follow-up mechanisms — to ensure that reviews of countries’ compliance with FATF Recommendations remain rigorous, comparable and fair across all jurisdictions. It also mandates new procedures for emerging issues — such as a dedicated process to address unintended consequences for non-profit organisations (NPOs) — reflecting FATF’s commitment to balancing enforcement of AML/CFT standards with protection of legitimate civil-society activities…

AMLA Chair appears before EP’s ECON and LIBE Committees to present AMLA’s progress, priorities, and answer MEPs on high-risk countries, crypto-assets, drug-related ML, and law-enforcement coordination

December 2, 2025

She highlighted AMLA’s immediate priorities for 2026: focusing on level-2 mandates with the greatest industry impact, preparing for direct supervision from 2028, developing standards and tools to enhance FIU effectiveness and cross-border cooperation, and establishing an internal risk-analysis function to guide risk-based approaches at both EU and national levels…

Companies House publishes the ‘Register of People with Significant Control’ guidance, detailing how UK companies must identify and record individuals or entities with substantial ownership or control

November 28, 2025

Under the PSC regime, firms must identify individuals or legal entities that meet defined “significant control” criteria — for example holding over 25% of shares or voting rights, having the power to appoint/remove a majority of directors, or otherwise exercising significant influence — and submit this data to Companies House. The system now centralises all PSC registers at Companies House …

FinCEN issues an alert warning financial institutions about cross-border transfers linked to the smuggling and exploitation of illegal migrants

November 28, 2025

The alert highlights financial patterns tied to human-smuggling operations — including rapid small-value transfers, funnel accounts, structuring, and transactions involving high-risk corridors in Latin America — and provides red-flag indicators to help institutions identify related illicit activity. It stresses that timely SAR filings, detailed narratives, and cooperation with law enforcement are essential to disrupting smuggling networks and protecting vulnerable migrants from exploitation.

FSB releases its 2025 G‑SIB list, keeping 29 banks with some bucket shifts, highlighting stricter capital, resolvability, and compliance requirements to safeguard against systemic and FC risks

November 28, 2025

The designation requires these banks to hold higher loss-absorbing capacity, meet Total Loss-Absorbing Capacity (TLAC) standards, maintain robust resolution plans, and adhere to enhanced supervisory expectations, underscoring their systemic importance and the need for strong governance, risk management, and compliance to safeguard global financial stability…

 

RUSI’s latest podcast warns that terrorist groups are exploiting online gaming and virtual economies to move funds anonymously, highlighting the need for stronger oversight and collaboration

November 28, 2025

The episode warns that these platforms largely operate outside regulated financial systems, making detection difficult, and stresses the need for stronger cooperation between gaming companies, regulators, and financial‑crime authorities to address this emerging risk…

FCA releases Handbook Notice 135, updating market rules and UK–Switzerland cross-border requirements while strengthening firms’ financial crime and due diligence obligations

November 28, 2025

The notice also introduces new guidance for firms providing investment and insurance services into Switzerland and updates technical standards across market-integrity and consumer-protection rules. These changes carry compliance and financial-crime implications, particularly around trade-reporting obligations, cross-border due-diligence expectations, and strengthened governance requirements…

UK Parliament launches inquiry into the Govt’s Financial Inclusion Strategy, urging action beyond ‘box‑ticking’ to ensure vulnerable groups gain real access to financial services while curbing FC risks

November 28, 2025

The Committee will examine whether existing measures, such as banking hubs, effectively reach those excluded from mainstream finance and will call for a strategic, outcome-driven approach supported by the private sector. From a financial‑crime perspective, meaningful inclusion is crucial: without access to regulated banking, excluded individuals may rely on informal or opaque channels, heightening risks…

ESMA issues a statement under MiCA setting out standardised, machine-readable formats for crypto transactions, identifiers, and white papers, strengthening transparency, traceability, and market integrity

November 28, 2025

The statement mandates that order-book and transaction records be maintained in machine-readable JSON format, that legal-entity clients and crypto-assets be identified using LEIs and DTIs respectively, and that crypto-asset white papers follow a standardised iXBRL/XHTML template per ESMA’s taxonomy. By harmonising data formats and identifiers, the guidance enhances regulatory oversight, improves traceability, and strengthens market integrity, helping authorities detect market abuse, money-laundering, and illicit flows…

FinCEN alerts FIs, especially MSBs to heighten vigilance over cross-border transfers that may involve individuals without lawful U.S. status and potentially conceal illicitly obtained funds

November 28, 2025

The alert reminds firms of their obligation to file Suspicious Activity Reports for any transaction of $2,000 or more when illicit activity is suspected and instructs them to reference the term “FIN-2025-Alert003” in relevant SARs. Issued in line with Executive Order 14159, the alert forms part of broader U.S. efforts to combat the exploitation of the financial system, noting that while most remittances are legitimate…

No results found.