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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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FCA opens its crypto authorisation gateway, allowing cryptoasset firms to apply for full FCA authorisation ahead of the new UK regulatory regime taking effect in Oct 2027

September 30, 2026

Firms intending to continue operating in the UK must apply for authorisation by 28 February 2027 and meet standards covering governance, consumer protection, safeguarding and financial resilience. The move shifts crypto oversight beyond the existing AML registration framework towards full FCA regulation, bringing cryptoasset firms under broader requirements for risk management, governance and customer protection. Firms will need to…

EuroPAM’s latest data give EU countries an average legislative comprehensiveness score of 66 for AML and 71 for asset recovery, with significant differences between countries

September 30, 2026

The assessment also highlights weaker EU-wide scores for financial disclosure (38), political financing (42) and public procurement (49), pointing to gaps in broader anti-corruption safeguards. The findings underline that strong AML rules alone are insufficient: effective prevention of illicit finance also depends on transparency, conflict-of-interest controls and asset-recovery mechanisms…

Met Police makes 17 arrests in major joint operation targeting an alleged organised-crime network involving suspected money laundering, false accounting and links to regulated firms

September 29, 2026

More than 800 officers searched 24 properties across London, Essex, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Suffolk as part of the joint investigation. Those arrested are suspected of offences including money laundering, participation in organised crime, false accounting and cheating the public revenue. The FCA said it had already disrupted seven firms connected with the wider investigation and was examining a further 30, highlighting the increasingly…

FATF and APG’s 2026 Mutual Evaluation of Canada exposes weaknesses in AML supervision, professional money laundering prosecutions and asset recovery, despite strong financial intelligence capabilities

September 29, 2026

The report identifies inadequate oversight of higher-risk sectors, including real estate and precious metals dealers, alongside inconsistent beneficial ownership transparency across provinces and territories. Canada must strengthen risk-based supervision, tackle complex money laundering cases and improve confiscation outcomes under a three-year improvement roadmap.

White House launches “Super Intelligence” era, directing federal agencies to replace AI terminology with “SI” and develop a new federal definition

September 29, 2026

The order also calls for a proposed federal definition of “Super Intelligence” within 60 days, alongside recommendations for changes to existing laws and executive actions. It directs federal agencies to use “Super Intelligence” and “SI” in place of “Artificial Intelligence” and “AI” across official communications, reports and policy documents, where permitted by law. The move signals a broader U.S. policy focus on increasingly advanced AI capabilities…

EPPO uncovers suspected €300m cross-border mobile-phone fraud in a 19-country operation involving more than 160 searches and seven arrests

September 29, 2026

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has launched a major enforcement operation against a criminal organisation suspected of selling more than one million used mobile phones as new, causing an estimated €300 million in consumer losses and more than €30 million in VAT losses across several EU Member States. Around 1,770 police, tax and customs officers participated in searches across 19 countries, illustrating the scale of cross-border coordination increasingly being used against organised VAT and financial crime.

EPPO secures further convictions in a major VAT-carousel and money-laundering investigation involving more than 400 companies and suspected laundering of proceeds from drug trafficking, cybercrime and investment fraud

September 29, 2026

Five individuals were convicted in Latvia for organised tax evasion as part of EPPO’s Admiral 2.0 investigation, which targets a wider cross-border VAT-carousel fraud and money-laundering network. EPPO suspects more than 400 companies of involvement in the scheme and says the same infrastructure may also have been used to launder proceeds generated through drug trafficking, cybercrime and investment fraud, demonstrating how VAT-fraud networks can operate as broader professional criminal-finance infrastructure.

FCA secures £851,000 in confiscation orders for victims of a £1.5M crypto investment fraud that defrauded at least 65 investors

September 28, 2026

The regulator secured confiscation orders against Raymondip Bedi and Patrick Mavanga following their convictions for their roles in a fraud that caused at least 65 investors to lose approximately £1.54 million. The court ordered Bedi to pay £603,404 and Mavanga £247,998, with recovered funds due to be returned to victims. The case demonstrates the FCA’s use of proceeds-of-crime powers alongside prosecution to recover assets generated through financial crime…

U.S. Senate investigation report finds 84% of 846 Iran-linked crypto wallets used Tether (USDT) as $603 million moved through Iran’s shadow banking network

September 28, 2026

Two sanctioned Iranian oil smugglers allegedly moved more than $603 million worth of Tether (USDT) between 2021 and 2025 through networks linked to Iranian financial institutions and regional proxy groups. The findings highlight how stablecoins, crypto intermediaries and unregulated exchanges can be used to bypass sanctions and move funds outside traditional banking channels…

UN Crime Congress, bringing together 121+ countries, adopts five-year roadmap to tackle ML/TF, illicit financial flows and AI-enabled financial crime

September 26, 2026

The Abu Dhabi Declaration calls for stronger financial investigations, asset tracing and recovery, and cross-border cooperation to disrupt the financial networks underpinning organised crime and other illicit activities. Countries are encouraged to translate the Declaration into specific, measurable and time-bound commitments through 2031, reinforcing international cooperation and national capabilities. This places financial crime, illicit financial flows and…

EC opens infringement procedures against 18 Member States for failing to fully transpose certain AMLD6 provisions – with two months to comply or face further legal steps

September 25, 2026

The provisions concern access to beneficial ownership registers for competent authorities, self-regulatory bodies, obliged entities and persons with a legitimate interest, supporting greater transparency over ownership and control structures. The affected Member States now have two months to complete transposition and notify the Commission, or face a further step in the infringement procedure through a reasoned opinion…

European Commission updates its FAQs on asset freezes and the prohibition on making funds or economic resources available, focusing on sanctions against Russia and Belarus 

September 25, 2026

The guidance clarifies how these restrictions apply in practice, including to funds and economic resources made available directly or indirectly. It addresses ownership and control considerations involving non-listed entities linked to designated persons. It also provides clarification on applicable exemptions and derogations, including the release of frozen funds in specific circumstances. The update is relevant to financial institutions assessing…

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