Monaco has made progress in strengthening its anti-money laundering regime but must continue work on key areas after missing agreed implementation deadlines, according to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) following its plenary meeting in Mexico City from 11th to 13th February.
The international financial watchdog acknowledged that since Monaco made a high-level political commitment in June 2024 to work with the FATF and MONEYVAL, the Principality “has taken steps towards improving its AML/CFT regime on many of its action items, including by strengthening the timeliness of STR reporting.”
However, the FATF noted that “all deadlines have now expired and work remains”, and outlined two specific areas requiring continued attention: enhancing the application of sanctions for AML breaches and applying effective, dissuasive and proportionate sanctions for money laundering.
Recognised improvements
The FATF’s assessment highlighted significant progress in the quality and timeliness of suspicious transaction reports submitted to Monaco’s financial intelligence unit, the AMSF (Autorité Monégasque de Sécurité Financière).
A Monegasque delegation led by the Minister of Finance and Economy attended the plenary session. In a statement released on Saturday, the Prince’s Government welcomed the recognition of what it described as tangible and effective results, reflecting a change in scale in implementing the national action plan.
Strengthened enforcement framework
Monaco’s sanctions policy has been reinforced, particularly in high-risk sectors including real estate, auctions, and trust or company service providers. The government highlighted that recent administrative sanctions demonstrate increased capacity to meet international standards.
These developments are supported by structural reinforcement, with AMSF staffing levels increasing from 20 to nearly 80 officers over four years. The agency has also established a fully operational sanctions department.
Continued momentum
The government reported a 10% average increase in suspicious transaction reports between 2023 and 2025, a rise of over 20% in financial intelligence requests to international partners, and a nearly 60% increase in reports transmitted to the Public Prosecutor’s Office since 2020.
Strengthening the criminal justice chain remains a priority for 2026, including through the specialised financial section of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the recruitment of two additional prosecutors.
Monaco is preparing its next National Risk Assessment for 2026-2027 and will submit a further progress report to the FATF addressing the remaining objectives under its action plan. The FATF encouraged the Principality “to build on its recent progress and continue to implement its action plan to address the above-mentioned strategic deficiencies as soon as possible.”
The Mexico City plenary also saw the FATF add Kuwait and Papua New Guinea to its list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring, and appoint Giles Thomson of the United Kingdom as incoming President for the 2026-2028 term.
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Photo: FATF Mexico Plenary February 2026. Credit: fatf-gafi