The Grey List and the Black List, created by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), categorize countries based on their perceived risks and compliance with international standards in countering financial crimes. The FATF is an intergovernmental organization established to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and other financial crimes globally.
The Grey List
The Grey List, officially known as “Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring,” consists of countries with strategic deficiencies in their frameworks to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing. These countries are urged to take corrective measures.
The Black List
The Black List, referred to as “High-Risk Jurisdictions subject to a Call for Action,” includes countries considered severe criminal threats to financial systems. These countries may be involved in activities like weapons proliferation or have not met FATF’s Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) requirements.
As a result, FATF member nations are recommended to implement stricter compliance measures, including enhanced due diligence for transactions involving countries on the Black List. According to the FATF, here are the countries that are currently blacklisted and greylisted (updated June 2023):
Black List – High-Risk Jurisdictions Subject to a Call for Action:
- Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
- Iran
- Myanmar
The Grey List – Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring
- Albania
- Barbados
- Burkina Faso
- Cameroon
- Cayman Islands
- Croatia
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- Gibraltar
- Haiti
- Jamaica
- Jordan
- Mali
- Mozambique
- Nigeria
- Panama
- Philippines
- Senegal
- South Africa
- South Sudan
- Syria
- Tanzania
- Turkey
- Uganda
- United Arab Emirates
- Vietnam
- Yemen
For more information, visit https://www.fatf-gafi.org/en/countries/black-and-grey-lists.html.