Daily Compliance Brief — FATF Updates High-Risk and Grey List Jurisdictions

February 26, 2026

Signal

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has issued updated statements following its plenary, revising the list of jurisdictions subject to increased monitoring and those identified as high-risk. The changes reflect progress by certain countries and continued strategic deficiencies in others.

These updates alter the global AML risk landscape by formally adjusting the status of specific jurisdictions within the FATF framework. The revisions carry direct implications for cross-border exposure, correspondent banking relationships, and risk-based customer classification.

Why it matters

Compliance teams must reassess country risk ratings, onboarding controls, and enhanced due diligence triggers linked to affected jurisdictions. Screening rules, transaction monitoring scenarios, and escalation protocols may require recalibration where geographic risk weightings are embedded.

Institutions with correspondent, trade finance, or cross-border remittance exposure should review concentration risks and document any resulting control adjustments to evidence alignment with updated FATF risk signals.