South Africa, three other countries removed from anti-money laundering watchlist
A global money-laundering watchdog has taken South Africa, Nigeria, Mozambique and Burkina Faso off its ‘grey list’ of countries subjected to increased monitoring.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a financial crimes watchdog based in France, said on Friday it was removing the four countries after “successful on-site visits” that showed “positive progress” in addressing deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing frameworks.
The FATF maintains “grey” and “black” lists for countries that do not meet its standards. Grey list countries are considered to have “strategic deficiencies” but are working with the organisation to address them.
FATF President Elisa de Anda Madrazo described the removal of the four countries as “a positive story for the continent of Africa”.
She said South Africa revamped its tools to detect money laundering and terrorist financing, Nigeria improved coordination between agencies, Mozambique increased financial intelligence sharing, and Burkina Faso strengthened oversight of financial institutions.
Nigeria and South Africa were added to the grey list in 2023, Mozambique in 2022, and Burkina Faso in 2021.
Officials from the four countries welcomed the decision. Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu called the delisting a “major milestone in Nigeria’s journey towards economic reform, institutional integrity and global credibility”.
Nigeria’s Financial Intelligence Unit said it had “worked resolutely through a 19-point action plan” to demonstrate commitment to improvements.
In South Africa, markets reacted immediately: yields on 10-year sovereign bonds eased slightly, and the rand strengthened against the dollar, reflecting renewed investor confidence.
In Nigeria, the decision is expected to facilitate diaspora remittances, worth nearly USD20 billion a year, and lower transaction costs for local banks.
Edward Kieswetter, Commissioner of the South African Revenue Service, said: “Removing the designation of grey listing is not a finish line but a milestone on a long-term journey towards building a robust and resilient financial ecosystem.”
Leaders in Mozambique and Burkina Faso did not immediately comment, although Mozambican officials had expressed optimism in recent months.
In July, Finance Minister Carla Louveira said Mozambique was “not simply working to get off the grey list, but working so that in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing, when the FATF makes its assessment in 2030, it will find a completely different situation from the one detected in 2021,” MZ News reported.
More than 200 countries worldwide have pledged to follow FATF standards, which review efforts to combat money laundering as well as terrorist and weapons financing. The FATF’s black or “high-risk” list includes Iran, Myanmar and North Korea.
The FATF warned, however, that delisting is not permanent. The countries must continue implementing reforms and will remain subject to periodic reviews.
