FATF Finance Ministers Commit to Strengthening Global Anti-Money Laundering Efforts

Finance Ministers of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) have committed to providing more funding to address gaps in the effective implementation of the organization’s standards, announced on Thursday.

In a statement, the agency noted that Ministers reaffirmed their support for FATF "as the global standard-setter for combatting money laundering and terrorist financing."

Currently, FATF boasts 40 member countries, with Indonesia being the latest nation to join in 2023.

Among the commitments made by FATF Ministers is an increase in the organization’s core funding "to ensure sustainability of the FATF’s budget." Additionally, they pledged to implement measures aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of efforts to combat money laundering and terrorism financing.

The necessity for these commitments arises from the recognition that "despite significant progress made, there continue to be gaps in effective implementation of the FATF standards."

FATF’s standards encompass a range of measures designed to assist countries in combating illicit financial flows, including recommendations on money laundering and beneficial ownership of legal entities.

While many FATF members are partially compliant with several of the 40 measures, some are non-compliant. For instance, China is non-compliant on six recommendations, while the United States is non-compliant with three.

During their biennial meeting in Washington DC, FATF Ministers endorsed a document containing 21 declarations that will guide the organization’s operations over the next two years.

Additional declarations made by FATF Ministers include the need for further efforts on supervision and preventive measures, beneficial ownership transparency, investigating and prosecuting money laundering, and confiscating proceeds of crime.

Given the ongoing serious threat of terrorism, FATF emphasized its strategic focus on countering terrorist financing and called upon all jurisdictions to remain vigilant of threats arising from the Russian Federation’s war against Ukraine.

Moreover, the organization committed to implementing measures to prevent Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) proliferators from raising and moving funds.

Ministers also pledged to fully, swiftly, and effectively implement the FATF Standards and to hold member countries accountable if they fail to do so.

T. Raja Kumar, President of FATF, emphasized the importance of depriving criminals of their ill-gotten gains in combating money laundering and financial crime, stating, "Depriving criminals of their ill-gotten gains is crucial to fighting the scourge of money laundering and financial crime."

The next meeting of FATF Ministers is scheduled for April 2026.

By fLEXI tEAM