The UK Treasury has issued a call for evidence seeking real-world examples from financial institutions and law firms demonstrating how they have effectively prevented money laundering, terrorist financing, and sanctions violations. The initiative is designed to showcase improvements in the country’s anti-money laundering framework ahead of a significant international review.
The government plans to submit its evidence package to the Financial Action Task Force, a global watchdog organization, in October. Following the submission, FATF assessment teams are scheduled to conduct an on-site evaluation of the UK’s financial crime prevention systems later this year, with the formal mutual evaluation process occurring in 2027. This review follows a previous assessment in 2018 that identified significant deficiencies in the UK’s money-laundering controls and contributed to concerns about London functioning as a destination for illicit financial flows.
The Treasury is specifically requesting institutions provide examples from 2022 onward of cases where they rejected or terminated potentially high-risk clients, as well as instances where their internal controls identified suspicious activity that subsequently prompted regulatory investigations or prosecutions. The government is also seeking examples of how firms adjusted their client acceptance criteria after discovering financial crime indicators.
The UK faces substantial challenges in demonstrating systemic improvements. According to the National Crime Agency, approximately £100 billion is laundered through or within the UK annually, despite significant spending on financial supervision and enforcement. The UK’s legal sector has consistently been classified as high-risk in national assessments since 2017. Additionally, regulators are monitoring emerging threats including artificial intelligence-facilitated investment fraud and cryptocurrency usage, which can obscure transaction origins.
A Treasury spokesperson emphasized the government’s commitment to coordinated action against economic crime, citing new strategies, enhanced enforcement capabilities, and increased funding. Financial rating agencies have noted that when international examiners conduct their evaluation, they will likely scrutinize how effectively the UK’s regulatory framework is actually reducing the estimated £100 billion in annual money laundering activity across the economy.
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