Vladimir Putin meets with the president of the Financial Action Task Force, Juan Manuel Vega-Serrano, in the Kremlin, Moscow, 26 April 2017. Photo: EPA / ALEXEI DRUZHININ / SPUTNIK / KREMLIN POOL
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the world’s leading anti-money laundering organisation, is considering adding Russia to its blacklist, Politico reported on Wednesday, citing a confidential document.
The decision is set to be discussed at a meeting of the Paris-based body on Tuesday, according to Politico, which said that Ukraine had led the campaign to blacklist the country, first asking for Russia to be nominated as a high-risk jurisdiction in April 2022, just two months after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began.
According to a dossier submitted to FATF members and reviewed by Politico, the reasons for Russia’s potential blacklisting include its close financial and military cooperation with North Korea and Iran, which are already on the FATF blacklist, as well as Moscow’s involvement in financing mercenary organisations, such as the Wagner Group.
The dossier also referenced Russia’s laundering of money obtained from goods stolen during the war in Ukraine.
The FATF has said publicly that it considers Russia’s aggression unacceptable and contrary to the organisation’s “core principles”, but in practice downgrading Russia’s status would require consensus among its multilateral membership, according to Politico.
The FATF suspended Russia as a member in February 2023. If Russia were added to the blacklist, money transfers to the country would be recognised as involving the same level of risk as transactions to North Korea or Iran.
“Being placed on a FATF black or grey list can severely damage a nation’s financial reputation and is seen as economically ruinous for most states,” Politico wrote.
