On 21 February 2025, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) released its latest update on jurisdictions under increased monitoring, commonly known as the ‘Grey list’. When the FATF places a jurisdiction under increased monitoring, it means the country has committed to resolve swiftly the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes and is subject to increased monitoring is referred as Grey list countries, they are actively working with the FATF and FATF-style regional bodies (FSRBs) to address strategic deficiencies in anti-money laundering (AML), counter-terrorist financing (CFT), and proliferation financing.
The newly updated grey list by FATF, published in Paris, includes Algeria, Angola, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Kenya, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Mali, Monaco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Nigeria, South Africa, South Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Venezuela, Vietnam, and Yemen. These jurisdictions are expected to implement reforms to strengthen their financial systems and prevent misuse for illicit activities.
In the update, the FATF clarifies that its monitoring process does not mandate enhanced due diligence measures against these jurisdictions but calls on financial institutions to apply a risk-based approach. The FATF advises that de-risking entire classes of customers is not recommended, and jurisdictions should ensure that essential financial flows such as humanitarian assistance, non-profit organisation (NPO) activities, and remittances are not disrupted. Ccording to the FATF update, countries should adhere to their obligations under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2761 (2024), which provides humanitarian exemptions to UN-imposed asset-freezing measures.
The latest FATF review includes updated assessments for jurisdictions that submitted progress reports since October 2024, namely Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Croatia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Venezuela, and Vietnam. Meanwhile, Lao PDR and Nepal have been newly added to the grey list. Algeria, Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, Haiti, Lebanon, Monaco, Syria, and Yemen deferred reporting, meaning their previous assessments remain in effect, though they may not reflect their most recent compliance status.
