Global AML Experts Call for Stronger Cooperation Against Terrorist Financing at Munich Conference

International anti-money laundering (AML) experts, including Germany’s finance minister, have urged greater global collaboration to combat terrorist financing at the ‘No Money For Terror’ conference held in Munich.

Many attendees echoed the concerns raised by Financial Action Task Force (FATF) President Elisa de Anda, who warned that “less than a third” of countries properly investigate and prosecute terrorist financing cases. She called on governments to make better use of financial intelligence, stressing that “turning off the money tap” could help “cut off the blood supply of terrorism.”

Germany’s Finance Minister, Jörg Kukies, supported her appeal for action. “To fight terror finance, we need multilateral cooperation and much stronger empowerment of our crime-fighting authorities in the digital space,” he wrote on LinkedIn.

The urgency of these discussions heightened after reports emerged that a car had struck a crowd just a few kilometers away from the conference venue. Authorities have since classified the incident as a suspected terrorist attack.

John Cusack, chair of the Global Coalition to Fight Financial Crime, described the moment the conference was disrupted by news of the event. “The ‘No Money for Terror’ Conference was interrupted with an announcement from [former FATF President] Marcus Pleyer that just outside our location a car had been driven into a crowd,” he said. “Whatever the motivation… the act had an impact. It feels like terrorist financing is well and truly back on the agenda.”

J. Edward ‘Ned’ Conway, Executive Secretary of the Wolfsberg Group, emphasized the need for financial institutions, regulators, and national financial intelligence units (FIUs) to collaborate more effectively. “Until examiners, the private sector, and the national FIUs come together to align on our priorities, much of the most valuable work produced by financial institutions in providing leads to law enforcement will continue to be underappreciated,” he said. Conway underscored the importance of working with regulators from the outset, stating, “It is on us, as a collective, to ensure that examiners are… a partner in the solution.”

In a statement, the FATF reinforced the need for unified global action. “We must be unified against the scourge of global terrorism by cutting the financial flows to terrorists. Thank you to Germany for convening these important discussions.”

By fLEXI tEAM