South Africa’s Grey List Exit Marks Progress, Not End Of Anti-Money Laundering Reforms

The National Treasury has cautioned that South Africa’s removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list is not the final chapter in its efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.

The FATF confirmed on Friday that South Africa has been officially delisted from the group of jurisdictions under increased monitoring. The decision came after this week’s FATF plenary meeting in Paris, where a 13-page report was issued updating the global watchdog’s latest findings.

South Africa was first placed on the grey list in 2023 after FATF identified 22 deficiencies in its financial crime controls. Since then, the country has made significant progress, addressing all the areas of concern through legal reforms and tighter oversight.

Grey List: Treasury Commits to Sustained Financial Oversight

National Treasury led the lengthy compliance process, introducing amendments to existing laws and passing new legislation to ensure stricter transparency in company and trust ownership.

These changes require entities to record and report information about their beneficial owners, a key step in curbing financial crime.

Reflecting on the achievement, Treasury adviser Ismail Momoniat said, “It’s obviously been really bad for us from a reputational perspective. It’s been quite humiliating for us as a country, and we’ve had to slog for over three years now to deal with the concerns.”

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Momoniat warned that South Africa must continue to strengthen its financial systems to avoid being grey listed again in future reviews.

“Let me be clear, it doesn’t mean we’ve solved our problems. All it means is that we’ve begun to deal with our problems and we’re going to have to continue strengthening our institutions so that when the next evaluation comes, in the next two years, that we are not grey listed again,” he said.

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