South Africa faces risk of returning to FATF grey list

South Africa is at risk of returning to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, according to a warning from Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA). Despite being removed from the list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring for money laundering and terrorist financing weaknesses, the country has shown a lack of progress in critical anti-corruption reforms.

BLSA’s quarterly Reform Tracker reported an anti-corruption reform score of 51.2, which remained unchanged from the previous quarter. While the overall reform score rose to 72.5, experts warn that weaknesses in investigating organized crime, successful prosecutions, and the recovery of criminal assets remain unresolved.

The warning comes as the nation prepares for a new mutual evaluation cycle by the FATF. A formal peer review is scheduled for the first quarter of 2027, which will assess whether South Africa has sustained the legislative and structural reforms implemented to secure its previous removal from the list.