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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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ESA’s first report on DORA major ICT-related incidents finds 3,383 incidents were reported across the EU financial sector in 2025, with one-third having a cross-border impact, exposing gaps in FC controls

June 3, 2026

The ESAs’ first annual report on major ICT-related incidents under DORA covers 3,383 incidents reported across the EU financial sector in 2025, finding that risks are increasingly borderless and interconnected, although the direct impact on clients and transactions was generally limited. System failures and external events were the main drivers, while only 10% of reported incidents related to cybersecurity, prompting the authorities to stress stronger third-party risk management, oversight of outsourced services and resilience against emerging AI-enabled threats…

FCA warns Football clubs that sponsorship deals with unauthorised crypto and trading firms may breach UK law and expose them to FC, reputational risk and potential criminal liability under POCA

June 3, 2026

The FCA highlighted that some of these firms may be operating illegally by providing regulated services or making unauthorised financial promotions in breach of UK law, and that sponsorships can inadvertently legitimise these entities while promoting them to UK consumers. The regulator stressed that funds received from such firms could constitute criminal property under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), creating potential financial crime risks for clubs. It urged football clubs to conduct robust due diligence, including checking the FCA Register and Warning List, verifying regulatory status…

UK calls on Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories to accelerate BO reforms, citing concerns that corporate secrecy continues to enable ML, tax abuse and hidden illicit wealth

June 3, 2026

The warning reflects growing frustration over the slow pace of reform, with officials arguing that jurisdictions such as Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands have too often been used to facilitate tax avoidance, conceal illicit wealth and launder criminal proceeds. The UK is pushing for stronger beneficial ownership registers, which help identify the true individuals behind companies and are considered a critical tool in combating money laundering, corruption and other forms of financial crime…

Europol’s Operation KRATOS 2, led by Bulgaria, dismantled illegal streaming networks, leading to 29 arrests, 9 organised crime groups disrupted and 86 suspects identified across multiple countries

June 3, 2026

The operation focused not only on shutting down websites but on disrupting the wider criminal ecosystem enabling the large-scale, cross-border distribution of pirated premium sports, film, and television content. Authorities uncovered complex technical infrastructures designed to evade detection, including separated hosting systems and distributed servers, and removed over 27,000 illegal streaming URLs. Europol played a key role in coordinating intelligence sharing, facilitating cross-border cooperation through SIENA, and supporting operational analysis to map the criminal networks…

EBA and NYDFS sign a landmark MoU on Stablecoins to strengthen cross-border oversight, information sharing, and regulatory cooperation against FC and emerging crypto risks

June 2, 2026

The MoU establishes a framework for the EBA and New York State Department of Financial Services to exchange supervisory and confidential information on stablecoin-related activities, co-ordinate oversight of supervised entities, identify market trends and risks, and support the integrity of the stablecoin market. It applies only to stablecoin activities, reflecting the growing cross-border importance of stablecoin issuers and the need for closer supervisory alignment between the EU’s MiCA framework and New York’s established stablecoin regime…

UKPI, backed by major UK banks and fintechs, launches a new open banking payment scheme to scale account-to-account recurring payments as a secure, lower-cost alternative to cards and direct debits

June 2, 2026

The scheme introduces a shared rulebook, commercial model and operational standards for variable recurring payments (VRPs), allowing consumers to authorise flexible or automated payments directly from their bank accounts with greater control over limits and duration. Initially focused on use cases such as government, utilities, charities and financial services, the initiative aims to scale open banking beyond one-off payments into recurring and subscription-style transactions. Supported by major UK banks and fintechs, the scheme aligns with the UK Government’s National Payments Vision and is now moving into market rollout following successful live testing…

UN Sanctions List last updated

June 2, 2026

JMLSG consults on proposed updates to Part I of its AML/CFT Guidance, including changes to unusual transactions, bank insolvency exceptions and pooled client accounts – feedback until 29 June 2026

June 1, 2026

The consultation proposes revisions to Part I of the JMLSG Guidance, including clarification of “unusually” complex, large or patterned transactions, a new exception for opening accounts for UK insolvent bank customers, and revised treatment of pooled client accounts. It also updates guidance on persons acting on behalf of customers, including verification of authority under powers of attorney, with comments due by 29 June 2026…

NCA UKFIU SARs in Action Issue 36 reports £5.8M in recovered assets, £14.5M under investigation, £500K+ in tax recoveries, and nearly 150 arrests with 40 convictions driven by SARs intelligence

June 1, 2026

This Edition reports that more than 1,600 law enforcement officials are now using the SARs Digital Service, while the UKFIU continues to develop new functionality and run legacy systems in parallel during the transition. It also features NECC Amber Alert themes on electronic money transfers between the Western Balkans and the UK and the abuse of international mortgage products, alongside SARs Intelligence…

Australia commits over $5M to strengthen AUSTRAC-led Pacific partnerships, enhancing intelligence sharing and capabilities to disrupt cross-border criminal money flows

May 29, 2026

The funding will support Pacific financial intelligence units through the Pacific Financial Intelligence Community, including further development of Project Taipan, AUSTRAC’s financial intelligence system now implemented in 10 Pacific countries. AUSTRAC will also expand training, mentoring and practical detection capability for analysts and regulators, with a focus on illicit flows linked to drug trafficking, child sexual exploitation, environmental crime and other serious regional threats…

OECD report ‘Benefits of AI Openness’ examines how open AI systems, through shared models, datasets and collaboration, can drive innovation, improve transparency and support inclusive economic growth

May 29, 2026

The report assesses the potential benefits of AI openness, drawing on OECD analysis, the OECD.AI Policy Observatory and third-party research to consider how openness may affect economic outcomes, innovation dynamics and regional or national AI development. It introduces an AI stack framework to distinguish how openness operates across different layers of AI systems, helping policymakers identify where open approaches may support growth while still requiring appropriate governance..

AUSTRAC warns that charities and non-profits remain vulnerable to terrorism financing abuse and provides updated indicators to help detect suspicious cross-border donation flows

May 28, 2026

AUSTRAC’s updated risk guidance finds that money laundering and terrorism financing risk in Australia’s non-profit sector remains stable, with criminals continuing to exploit some charities and NPOs to move illicit funds domestically and overseas. It adds suspicious activity indicators to help regulated businesses identify possible NPO-related abuse and strengthen risk-based systems, controls and reporting…

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