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The Isle of Man has reinforced its reputation as one of the world’s most tightly supervised gambling jurisdictions, with its latest AML/CFT guidance underscoring that reputation. Released in October 2025 by the Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC), the document targets online gambling licence holders operating under network permissions—a niche but high-risk corner of the e-gaming ecosystem where rapid transaction flows and opaque corporate structures often converge. The guid

Australia’s financial intelligence regulator, AUSTRAC, has intensified its crackdown on illicit cash-to-crypto operations, zeroing in on a key player whose compliance lapses expose growing vulnerabilities in the nation’s digital currency oversight. The enforcement action against Cryptolink Pty Ltd not only underscores AUSTRAC’s sharpened focus on crypto ATM operators but also highlights how traditional laundering techniques are being repurposed through emerging technologies.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has released its final draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) this week, introducing a detailed framework to define how financial institutions should assess the materiality of Credit Valuation Adjustment (CVA) risk exposures arising from fair-valued securities financing transactions (SFTs). The newly published draft RTS lay out the specific conditions and criteria that banks and other financial institutions must apply to determine whet

The European Banking Authority’s 2025 response to the European Commission’s Call for Advice on six key Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) mandates reads as both a roadmap and a reality check. Released in October 2025, the report lays the technical foundation for the European Union’s new AML regime while quietly acknowledging the central challenge: AMLA’s operational capacity may not yet measure up to its sweeping mandate. Behind the EBA’s formal prose lies a pragmatic und

The global campaign against money laundering has entered a transformative phase with the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) 2025 revision of Recommendation 16, a sweeping update that marks the most significant overhaul of payment transparency rules in more than a decade. The restructured standard directly addresses the challenges brought by technological innovation across the financial system—ranging from instant payments and digital wallets to cross-border cash withdrawals

Italy’s online gambling operators have been given until 13 November 2025 to declare their principal domain names, following a new directive from the Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM), which enforces one of the key measures in the country’s reorganised online gambling framework. The instruction, issued through a circular from ADM’s Remote Gaming and Betting Office and signed by Antonio Giuliani, stipulates that all licensed operators must operate exclusively under a si

Entain Australia has admitted to certain shortcomings in its previous anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) compliance program, while simultaneously contesting a number of claims and interpretations made by Australia’s financial crime regulator, AUSTRAC. The operator made the statements as it filed its defence in response to AUSTRAC’s amended statement of claim in the Federal Court of Australia, asserting that it has transformed its operations into a

The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) has announced that it is temporarily halting the publication of its Certification Registers and certification examination results following the discovery of identity fraud incidents involving these records. According to the commission, certain individuals have been found unlawfully using the personal data of people listed in the Certification Registers or mentioned in the announcements of examination results, with the inte

Across Europe, regulators now expect financial institutions to prove that their own analysis can reveal the true money laundering and terrorism financing risks across every business line, channel, customer group, product, and geography. What was once a box-ticking compliance exercise has evolved into the backbone of the risk-based approach—deeply embedded in supervisory reviews, governance discussions, and strategic investment decisions for data, systems, and personnel. A mat

The conviction of former Hua Han Health Industry Holdings executive Wong Ming Chun for laundering corporate funds has highlighted a rare instance in which internal misconduct within a listed company escalated into a full-fledged financial crime case. Although Hong Kong’s financial system is internationally recognized for its stringent regulatory oversight, this case demonstrated that even the most robust external supervision cannot compensate for internal betrayal and failed

The global campaign against money laundering has entered a transformative phase with the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) 2025 revision of Recommendation 16, a sweeping reform that marks the most consequential shift in payment transparency standards in more than a decade. This new framework responds directly to rapid technological advances across the financial ecosystem, acknowledging how instant payments, digital wallets, cross-border cash withdrawals, and virtual assets

In a groundbreaking action announced in late October 2025, the United States Department of the Treasury designated Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his closest associates under Executive Order 14059, the U.S. sanctions authority aimed at persons involved in the international narcotics trade. This unprecedented step — targeting a sitting leader of a key U.S. ally — has drawn global attention not just for its political implications but for the alarm it raises about the con

Across the African continent, a profound wave of regulatory reflection and reform is transforming how nations confront money laundering and the financing of terrorism. Ghana and Botswana, long regarded as benchmarks for financial governance, have recently unveiled ambitious initiatives designed to close the systemic gaps that allow illicit funds to circulate undetected. While the Bank of Ghana has implemented a comprehensive new framework for anti-money laundering and counter

A recent federal conviction in New York has exposed how seemingly modest cryptocurrency donations can evolve into a sophisticated terrorist-financing laundering operation. The case of Abdullah At Taqi and Mohamad David Hashimi demonstrates that even limited transfers disguised as charitable aid can sustain violent organisations when paired with modern digital tools and weak oversight. It also underscores how anti-money-laundering frameworks are adapting to trace cross-platfor

Britain’s financial markets regulator has initiated legal action against HTX, a global cryptocurrency exchange, accusing the firm of unlawfully promoting crypto asset services to UK consumers. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confirmed that it had filed civil proceedings in London’s High Court against HTX, formerly known as Huobi, for violating Britain’s financial promotions regime. According to the FCA’s website, HTX is not authorised to operate in the United Kingdom. “

A sweeping multinational operation spanning six African countries has exposed a sophisticated and evolving network of terrorism financing that integrates informal money transfer systems with cryptocurrency-based Ponzi schemes. Conducted between July and September 2025, Operation Catalyst—jointly coordinated by INTERPOL and AFRIPOL—resulted in 83 arrests and uncovered more than USD 260 million in suspicious transactions potentially connected to extremist activity. The investig

The unexpected presidential pardon of Changpeng Zhao, founder of Binance and one of the most prominent figures in the global cryptocurrency industry, has reignited discussions on financial crime accountability and the politicization of anti-money-laundering enforcement. The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Zhao’s release comes less than a year after he served a federal prison sentence following one of the largest corporate money-laundering convictions in U.

FinCEN’s 2024 financial trend analysis has revealed an intricate web of shadow banking transactions worth approximately $9 billion linked to Iran, which managed to infiltrate the U.S. financial system through correspondent accounts and a network of global front companies. The disclosure exposed one of the most complex and globally dispersed money laundering operations currently active, demonstrating how Iranian exchange houses, offshore entities, and front companies construct

The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) has announced the adoption of new joint guidelines that require financial entities to assess and report the aggregated annual costs and losses resulting from major Information and Communications Technology (ICT)-related incidents, in line with the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA Regulation). In a circular distributed on Wednesday, the commission informed a broad spectrum of supervised financial entities that it ha

The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC) has confirmed it will move forward with its proposed Gambling Supervision Commission Bill after concluding a public consultation process, marking one of the most extensive updates to the island’s gambling regulatory framework in years. The draft legislation aims to modernize oversight across seven separate gambling acts, introducing standardized mechanisms for inspection, investigation, and enforcement. The consultation, l