Anti-money laundering (AML) compliance across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has been undergoing rapid change.
According to Workfusion, stronger rules, heightened oversight and a broader embrace of risk-based approaches supported by technology are transforming the region’s financial crime landscape. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has highlighted notable progress, particularly in areas such as beneficial ownership transparency and enforcement.
Among regional leaders, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has distinguished itself with the speed at which it has modernised its AML and counter-terrorist financing framework. Policymakers have adopted both policies and technologies to strengthen its regime, with the aim of aligning closely with international best practice.
The momentum builds on progress seen in 2023 and 2024. Following cabinet approval in September 2023, the UAE rolled out its National Strategy for Anti-Money Laundering, Countering the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT/CPF) for 2024–2027. The plan was informed by the UAE National Risk Assessment, developed with the World Bank Group’s methodology. FATF recognised these advances by removing the UAE from its Grey List, commending the country for addressing the deficiencies identified in 2022.
Further reforms arrived in 2024, including a national strategy that prioritised cybercrime, digital payments and trade-based money laundering (TBML). By December that year, the National AML/CFT Committee General Secretariat had been launched to oversee policy execution and global alignment. More recently, the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has imposed financial penalties, including a 3m AED fine against firms failing to comply with standards.
AML enforcement in 2025 is the result of collaboration across several authorities. The CBUAE regulates financial institutions, while the Ministry of Economy (MOE) oversees designated non-financial businesses and professions such as lawyers, real estate agents and precious metals dealers. The Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) manages securities firms, and the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) processes suspicious transaction reports (STRs). Local emirate-level regulators and police forces also play a role in enforcement.
The UAE has also sharpened its oversight of crypto and FinTech. The Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority and SCA now require virtual asset service providers (VASPs) to adopt robust know your customer (KYC) programmes that include cross-border transaction monitoring, wallet verification and blockchain forensics. Meanwhile, international businesses in free zones operate under the frameworks of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), which are broadly aligned with federal rules.
The consequences of failing to comply are severe. Penalties include corporate fines of up to AED 50m, prison terms of up to 10 years, and potential licence revocations and asset freezes. Recent actions illustrate this tough stance: the CBUAE fined a UAE bank AED 3m, while a foreign bank branch was hit with a 5.9m AED sanction. The MOE has also revoked multiple licences of precious metals dealers that breached regulations.
In this environment, businesses must ensure their compliance systems are watertight. Technology is increasingly being seen as the answer. WorkFusion, a provider of AI-powered financial crime compliance solutions, offers a suite of digital agents designed to reduce risk and manual workload. These include Edward, who automates enhanced due diligence; Isaac, who streamlines transaction monitoring; Kayla, who manages perpetual KYC; Evelyn, who handles politically exposed persons (PEP) screening; Evan, who conducts adverse media checks; and Tara, who reviews sanctions screening alerts.
With these AI-driven tools, organisations operating in the UAE can better navigate the complexities of the country’s strengthened AML/CFT regime, reduce the risk of penalties and maintain credibility in a market committed to high compliance standards.
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