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South Africa to exit FATF grey list by mid-2025
South Africa, located at the southernmost tip of the Africa continent, has announced its plan to exit the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, a designation for countries with strategic deficiencies in their AML/CFT systems, by mid-2025.
Being on the grey list means facing additional scrutiny from financial institutions. These impact transaction processing times and affect high-risk markets like gambling.
South Africa has been working on developing its anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) policies since the 2021 FATF evaluation. Later, in 2023, the country made further improvements and submitted a follow-up report.
FATF stated:
“South Africa has taken steps towards improving its AML/CFT regime, ensuring the effective implementation of targeted financial sanctions.”
Despite these efforts, South Africa still faces issues in license awarding processes that delay the country’s exit from the FATF grey list.
FATF’s advice to South Africa
In order to exit the grey list, FATF advises that South Africa must first reduce the current 15-day reporting timeframe in case of suspected transactions. Moreover, inconsistencies in casino regulation in different provinces are themselves a challenge, as some regions have stricter AML requirements than others. If following the advice, South Africa could be removed from the grey list by June 2025. In case of a failure, the exit process could be extended to October 2025, which will affect the economy and local businesses.
South Africa hopes to exit the FATF grey list as early as May 2025 and reinforce its financial stability.
FAQs
Is gambling legal in South Africa?
Gambling in South Africa is legal yet regulated by national and provincial laws.
What is the legal gambling age in South Africa?
The legal gambling age in South Africa is 18.
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