Turkey on FATF Grey List

• IAS NEXT, Lucknow
• 25, Oct 2021

The Financial Action Task Force(FATF) has added Turkey, along with Jordan and Mali, in its revised list of “jurisdictions under increased monitoring”, also known as the FATF grey list. There are now 23 countries in the list.

What prompts FATF to place countries under the grey list?

If countries fail to prevent international money laundering and terrorist financing, then they shall be placed on the list.

What does ‘increased monitoring’ mean?

According to the FATF, when a jurisdiction is placed under increased monitoring, “it means the country has committed to swiftly resolve the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes and is subject to extra checks”.

Which countries were removed out of the list?

The FATF took two countries — Botswana and Mauritius — out of the grey list. It is because these countries had made significant progress in addressing the strategic AML/CFT (Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism) deficiencies identified earlier by the FATF and included in their respective action plans.

Blacklist and grey list:

Black List: Countries known as Non-Cooperative Countries or Territories (NCCTs) are put in the blacklist. These countries support terror funding and money laundering activities. The FATF revises the blacklist regularly, adding or deleting entries.

Grey List: Countries that are considered safe haven for supporting terror funding and money laundering are put in the FATF grey list. This inclusion serves as a warning to the country that it may enter the blacklist.