FATF Releases Outcomes of February Plenary

Key developments include:

➡️ Grey-List Jurisdictions: Kuwait and Papua New Guinea were added to the list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring. FATF also updated its public statement on Iran;

➡️ Focus on Cyber-Enabled Fraud: Approved a new paper on the escalating global fraud threat, highlighting how digital technologies are increasing the scale and sophistication of scams, and reaffirming fraud as a strategic priority for the coming years;

➡️ Virtual Asset Risk Reports: Two upcoming reports explore the evolving risks posed by offshore Virtual Asset Service Providers (oVASPs), stablecoins and unhosted wallets, with a focus on the regulatory vulnerabilities criminals seek to exploit;

➡️ Enhanced Risk-Based Evaluations: Mutual evaluations of Austria, Italy and Singapore were adopted under the new assessment, with greater emphasis on effectiveness in tackling illicit finance and time-bound remediation roadmaps; and

➡️ Global Network Coordination: Measures were agreed to strengthen cohesion across FATF and FATF-Style Regional Bodies to improve consistency in AML/CFT implementation.

✅ Firms should monitor forthcoming FATF publications on cyber-enabled fraud and virtual assets, reassess exposure to high-risk jurisdictions, and ensure controls relating to offshore VASPs remain aligned with evolving global standards.

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