G20 Calls for Stronger FATF Action on Virtual Assets, Scam Compounds and Illicit Finance

G20 finance ministers and central bank governors have called for stronger implementation of global anti-money laundering standards, with particular attention to virtual assets, fraud-related illicit finance and scam compounds.

The call appears in the G20 Chair’s Statement issued after the second meeting of G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Asheville, North Carolina, held on 31 August and 1 September 2026 under the United States G20 Presidency.

Virtual assets and fraud move higher on the agenda

The G20 reaffirmed its support for the Financial Action Task Force and FATF-Style Regional Bodies in overseeing implementation of the FATF Standards on money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing. It also called on jurisdictions to implement risk-based AML/CFT and counter-proliferation-financing supervision.

The statement specifically urged FATF to ensure that jurisdictions with significant virtual-asset activity are effectively implementing FATF standards for virtual assets as a priority. The wording places implementation, rather than merely adoption of rules, at the centre of the G20’s concern.

The G20 also welcomed FATF’s renewed focus on illicit finance and money laundering arising from fraud, highlighting the evolving threat from scam compounds and the use of artificial intelligence by fraudsters. It endorsed stronger public-private partnerships and information-sharing arrangements designed to detect and disrupt illicit finance more quickly and at scale.

The statement refers back to the FATF Ministerial Declaration adopted in April 2026 and notes that the United States is expected to host FATF’s Learning and Development Forum in Dallas later this year.

Broader financial-system priorities

Elsewhere in the statement, G20 members said that addressing illicit finance can help remove structural constraints on investment and strengthen macroeconomic resilience. The group also reaffirmed work on cross-border payments and said it looked forward to Financial Stability Board findings on the cross-border implications of global stablecoin arrangements and the availability and quality of stablecoin data.

For AML teams, the statement is notable because it links three issues that regulators are increasingly treating as interconnected: virtual-asset implementation gaps, industrial-scale fraud and scam compounds, and faster public-private information sharing. It signals continued pressure for supervisors and regulated firms to demonstrate that risk-based controls are effective in practice, particularly where digital assets and fraud proceeds intersect.