meta_id 3193882

On May 28, 2026, Finland's Ministry of Finance and Ministry of the Interior published the country's first national strategy to prevent money laundering, terrorism financing, and the circumvention of targeted economic sanctions. The State Council approved the strategy as a principle decision on May 28, 2026. Finland's overall money laundering risk level is assessed as significant, while terrorism financing risk is assessed as moderately significant. The strategy aims to guide authorities and key stakeholders toward coordinated, risk-based, and evidence-driven action to prevent criminal and terrorist actors from exploiting Finland's financial markets and to safeguard financial market and societal stability. The threat landscape is multifaceted and closely linked to digitalisation, international crime, and geopolitical changes. The greatest risks relate to informal money transfer systems, cryptocurrency services, and payment services. Terrorism financing often involves international money flows transferred through registered hawala-type money remitters and unregistered hawalas. Key national vulnerabilities include limited supervisory resources, gaps in customer knowledge requirements, and information-sharing constraints. The ministries simultaneously published action plans for 2026–2029 designed to mitigate identified risks and implement the strategy's objectives. For the first time, a dedicated action plan addresses the non-profit organisation (NPO) sector, responding to a national NPO sector money laundering and terrorism financing risk assessment published in 2024. Action plans assign responsible parties, resources, implementation timelines, and performance metrics for each measure. The strategy, risk assessments, and action plans form a comprehensive framework reflecting Finland's national understanding of money laundering and terrorism financing risks and their management approaches. REFERENCES: - Valtiovarainministeriö (Ministry of Finance): https://vm.fi/ - Sisäministeriö (Ministry of the Interior): https://sm.fi/