How the FATF works
The FATF describes itself as a 40-member body. Its members include the European Commission and the Gulf Co-operation Council alongside countries, and Russia's membership has been suspended since 24 February 2023. Nine regional bodies are associate members, and more than 200 countries and jurisdictions have committed to the standards.
The Recommendations were first issued in April 1990. The current set was adopted in February 2012 and has been updated regularly since, most recently in June 2026. Countries are assessed against them in mutual evaluations.
The FATF black list and grey list
Three times a year the FATF publishes two lists of jurisdictions with weak controls.
- High-Risk Jurisdictions subject to a Call for Action, the black list: on 19 June 2026, North Korea, Iran and Myanmar.
- Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring, the grey list: countries that have committed to resolve identified deficiencies within agreed timeframes.
Why the FATF matters to a payments or crypto business
National law picks the lists up. The FATF calls for enhanced due diligence on black list countries, and the UK's Money Laundering Regulations 2017 require it where a customer is established in one (regulation 33).
Most of what a compliance team does traces back to the Recommendations: customer due diligence, record keeping, suspicious transaction reports, the Travel Rule. In June 2019 the FATF extended its standards to virtual assets and to the firms that handle them, which the FATF calls virtual asset service providers.
FATF, regulator or EU authority?
- National regulator
- Licenses and supervises firms, and can fine them. The FATF assesses countries, not firms, and has no powers over a business.
- AMLA
- The EU's anti-money laundering authority, which issues guidelines and standards under EU law. The FATF's standards are international, and reach firms through such laws.
Where the FATF shows up in a platform
Modules that do the work
- KYC / AMLIdentity checks, screening and ongoing monitoring, with the verification provider you choose.
- Compliance reportingTransaction monitoring, the Travel Rule and regulatory reports, ready for your regulator.
Platforms that need it
Where it is written
The laws and standards this page's facts come from.
- FATF, Who we are
- FATF, History of the FATF
- FATF, "Black and grey" lists, 19 June 2026
- Money Laundering Regulations 2017 (legislation.gov.uk)
General information, not legal advice: what applies to you depends on your services and your market.