30 October 2025
EBA ¦ AML/CFT Newsletter - Issue 17
Key Updates from EBA Newsletter Issue 17 – 2025
EBA Closes AML/CFT Chapter as AMLA Takes the Helm: What Changes for EU Financial Crime Control
A coordinated handover from the European Banking Authority (EBA) to the new Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) marks a major shift in how the EU will fight financial crime. The transition consolidates AML/CFT powers, reshapes supervisory cooperation, and sets up a more consistent framework for enforcement, risk assessment, and information sharing.
The Final Meeting of the AML Standing Committee
For five years, the EBA’s Anti-Money Laundering Standing Committee (AMLSC) has been the engine of EU-level coordination against money laundering and terrorist financing. Its thirtieth and final meeting took place in September, closing a phase that prioritized supervisory convergence, policy alignment, and cross-border cooperation. The EBA signaled gratitude to the committee’s participants and pointed stakeholders to a factsheet explaining the transition to AMLA.
EuReCA Moves to AMLA
The EBA’s AML/CFT database, EuReCA, became a key instrument for sharing serious AML/CFT deficiencies and remedial measures among competent authorities. Since its launch in 2022, 45 AML/CFT and prudential authorities reported more than 3,500 serious deficiencies related to 670 institutions. On 15 October, EuReCA was transferred to AMLA. Expect continuity: AMLA will now leverage EuReCA for supervisory coordination, trend analysis, and risk identification across the EU.
A Structured Cooperation Framework: The EBA–AMLA MoU
The EBA will complete the transfer of AML/CFT powers, systems, and expertise to AMLA by 31 December 2025. From 2026 onward, cooperation between both authorities will be institutionalized, anchored by a Memorandum of Understanding signed on 3 July 2025. The goal is consistency and coherence between AML and prudential policy and supervision — critical to safeguarding market integrity and resilience.
Technical Foundations for the New Regime
In October, the EBA published its final report in response to the European Commission’s Call for Advice on new AMLA mandates. The package includes four draft Regulatory Technical Standards and technical advice on pecuniary sanctions and intra-group information sharing. Once adopted, these standards will set a common approach to enforcement and risk assessment across the EU. AMLA will use them to determine which institutions it will supervise directly. For institutions, the most visible impact will be harmonized rules on customer due diligence, creating greater predictability for cross-border compliance teams.
State of AML/CFT Supervision in EU Banking
Between 2018 and 2024, the EBA conducted intrusive reviews of 40 competent authorities overseeing ML/TF risks in banks, followed by targeted feedback, recommendations, and four public summary reports. The October stocktake finds clear progress: stronger AML/CFT supervision, improved cooperation domestically and internationally, and better overall effectiveness. Persistent constraints include staffing and budget pressures. AMLA will carry this work forward under its indirect supervision mandate, emphasizing supervisory outcomes and cross-jurisdictional consistency.
AML/CFT Colleges: Stable, Effective, and Ready for AMLA
Since 2019, more than 260 AML/CFT colleges have been established to formalize multi-authority cooperation. The EBA’s final report on their functioning notes stability in the framework, a slight reduction in college numbers due to mergers or terminations, continued effective information sharing, and marginally increased participation from third-country observers. Two areas still need work: embedding risk-based approaches in college organization and ensuring systematic discussions on shared ML/TF risks. From 1 January 2026, AMLA will take over monitoring.
Supervisory Convergence Continues
The EBA’s annual report on supervisory convergence highlights actions from 2024 that supported more consistent AML/CFT oversight, including peer reviews, supervisory priorities, case-specific liaison where ML/TF risks materialized, and the monitoring of AML/CFT colleges. These efforts underpin the transition, giving AMLA a strong baseline for unified EU supervision.
Crypto Oversight: Lessons Applied to MiCA
The EBA has been central to strengthening AML/CFT rules for crypto-asset businesses since 2018. Its October report provides guidance on tackling ML/TF risks across issuance, trading, and service provision, aligned with the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). The report aims to support effective application of MiCA and build robust, forward-looking AML/CFT supervision for crypto-assets. In parallel, the European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, ESMA, EIOPA) renewed their consumer warning on crypto-assets and published a factsheet explaining what MiCA means for consumers, including the importance of verifying whether providers are authorized in the EU.
White Labelling: Opportunities and Risks
The EBA’s thematic report on white labelling in financial services examines how distribution chains are evolving and where supervisory attention is needed. While white labelling can expand access and innovation, it raises AML/CFT challenges around customer due diligence, divergent national identification and verification requirements, fragmented procedures, and ensuring that partners meet regulatory expectations. Firms should revisit governance, outsourcing controls, and KYB/KYC frameworks to manage these risks.
SREP Guidelines: Consultation on Revisions
The EBA launched a consultation to revise the Guidelines on common procedures and methodologies for the supervisory review and evaluation process (SREP), with a proposed extension to third-country branches. AML/CFT provisions already embedded in the guidelines remain unchanged, maintaining continuity while broadening scope.
What’s Next: EBA’s 2026 Work Programme
Despite handing over standalone AML/CFT powers, the EBA will continue to contribute through its prudential remit. Joint EBA–AMLA work will focus on unwarranted de-risking and new guidelines on cooperation between supervisors and Financial Intelligence Units. Building on the MoU, both authorities commit to close, continuous collaboration.
A Closing Note from the EBA AML/CFT Newsletter
This is the final issue of the EBA’s AML/CFT Newsletter, which has provided updates since 2020. The EBA thanks readers for their engagement and shared commitment to protecting the EU’s financial system. As AMLA steps into its role, stakeholders should expect more unified supervision, clearer standards, and deeper cooperation — key ingredients for reducing ML/TF risk and strengthening trust in European finance.
Dive deeper
- EBA ¦ AML/CFT Newsletter - Issue 17 ¦ Link
What else?
