Phoenix Compliance Essentials #8
Today’s focus: FATF & MONEYVAL – understanding the key players in AML/CFT-P-C
➡️ The FATF (Financial Action Task Force), established by the G7 in 1989, is the leading intergovernmental body in the fight against money laundering, terrorist financing, proliferation financing and corruption.
It develops the 40 Recommendations, which form the international standard for AML/CFT-P-C.
It also monitors their implementation through a mutual evaluation process conducted either directly by the FATF or by one of the nine recognised regional bodies known as FSRBs (FATF-Style Regional Bodies).
All of them apply the same evaluation methodology, which is based on two components:
Technical compliance (the incorporation of FATF standards into domestic legislation),
Effectiveness (the tangible results achieved in practice).
➡️ MONEYVAL, one of these FSRBs, operates under the Council of Europe.
It is responsible for assessing Council of Europe jurisdictions that are not full members of the FATF, such as Monaco, Malta and Andorra.
➡️ In practical terms:
The FATF evaluates its own members (France, Japan, the United States, etc.),
MONEYVAL evaluates Council of Europe jurisdictions that are not FATF members.
Both use the same assessment framework, based on compliance with the 40 Recommendations and the evaluation of 11 Immediate Outcomes relating to effectiveness.
As a result, assessed jurisdictions must demonstrate not only that they have incorporated the FATF Recommendations into their domestic legal framework, but also that they effectively implement them in practice through preventive measures, risk detection mechanisms and effective sanctions.
At the end of the evaluation process, a detailed report is published, including specific recommendations and a follow-up process. Each report forms part of the international monitoring framework. In cases of non-compliance or insufficient progress, a jurisdiction may be subject to enhanced measures, including placement on the grey list or black list.
👉 In summary: FATF and MONEYVAL work together to ensure a consistent and effective international AML/CFT-P-C framework.
