The European Union (EU) revealed on Tuesday that it has excluded the United Arab Emirates from its list of “high-risk” countries related to money laundering, while simultaneously adding Monaco and nine other jurisdictions.
The European Commission announced the addition of Algeria, Angola, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Namibia, Nepal, and Venezuela to the list of nations that will undergo enhanced scrutiny regarding their money laundering regulations, which now includes Monaco.
Alongside the UAE, the EU removed Barbados, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Panama, the Philippines, Senegal, and Uganda from its list.
These changes follow a decision by a money-laundering watchdog in February, which lifted the Philippines from its increased monitoring list while adding Laos and Nepal.
Based in Paris, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) evaluates the efforts of over 200 countries and jurisdictions in combating money laundering and financing terrorism, and maintains a “grey list” of nations under closer scrutiny regarding their financial transactions.
Monaco has been on the FATF list since mid-2024, alongside EU member nations Bulgaria and Croatia.
The European Parliament and member states will now review the EU list, which will take effect within a month unless there are any objections, as stated by the commission.
Monaco’s government acknowledged this update in a statement, which could lead to its inclusion on the EU list unless the European Parliament or the Council of the EU takes a different stance.
It also emphasised its dedication to implementing the required actions to be removed from the FATF’s grey list “in the near future.”
