Historical crucial decision – the Egmont Group suspended membership of Rosfinmonitoring (FIU of the Russian Federation)

On October 19, the Egmont Group Chair issued a Statement according to which the Egmont Group remains deeply concerned about the devastating effects of the current Russian military aggression against Ukraine and the negative impact on the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine (FIU of Ukraine).

Trust is severely eroded due to Rosfinmonitoring’s (FIU of the Russian Federation) position regarding the actions and policies of its government, and the ways of communication it has chosen. To maintain the Egmont Group’s reputation in the global AML/CFT space, to ensure cohesion in the AML/CFT ecosystem, and to protect other Egmont Group interests and objectives, the Heads of FIUs of the Egmont Group agreed during its 18 October 2023 virtual meeting to:

          - Suspend Rosfinmonitoring’s membership with the Egmont Group of FIUs, for as long as it is required to protect the interests of the Egmont Group and to ensure the achievability of its objectives.

          - Uphold the additional measures taken by the Heads of FIU on 13 December 2022 as far as practical in light of the suspension.

The Egmont Group will continue to monitor the implementation of these measures for as long as these actions are practical and required to protect the Egmont Group’s interests and objectives.

The Head of the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine, Igor Cherkaskyi emphasized:

“We are grateful to all our partners for their support of the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine, for the constructive and meaningful discussion.

Russia’s terrorist war, the risks and threats it poses to the international financial system leaves no other options for professional and apolitical organizations in the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing community. The Egmont Group has sent a clear signal that Russian financial intelligence has a negative impact on the Group’s interests and reputation.

All Rosfinmonitoring’s membership privileges have been suspended, and from now on, the financial intelligence of foreign FIUs cannot be used by the Russian side to support aggression and disruptive activities contrary to the security and stability of the Global Network”.