The Riffle
Financial crime is becoming increasingly complex, cross border and technology driven. Recognising that traditional Suspicious Transaction Reporting alone is no longer sufficient, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has published its 2026 report on Information Sharing to Combat Illicit Finance, highlighting how Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) have evolved into one of the most effective mechanisms for detecting, preventing and disrupting illicit finance.
The report examines how jurisdictions are building structured collaboration between regulators, Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs), law enforcement agencies and private sector institutions to improve intelligence sharing while balancing legal, privacy and data protection requirements.
Key Highlights
Public Private Partnerships are becoming central to AML effectiveness
The FATF observes a clear shift from traditional compliance driven reporting towards continuous collaboration between public authorities and the private sector. Rather than functioning solely as reporting mechanisms, PPPs are increasingly being used to identify emerging threats, coordinate investigations and improve financial crime detection through real time intelligence sharing.
No single PPP model fits every jurisdiction
The report confirms that jurisdictions continue to adopt different governance models depending on their legal and institutional frameworks.
Today, more than 84 PPPs operate across 51 jurisdictions, with most being led by Financial Intelligence Units, while others are coordinated by law enforcement agencies or multi agency task forces.
This flexibility demonstrates that effective collaboration depends more on governance and trust than on a prescribed organisational structure.
Operational intelligence is becoming as important as strategic intelligence
One of the report’s key themes is the distinction between strategic and operational information sharing.
Strategic collaboration focuses on typologies, emerging risks and National Risk Assessments, while operational partnerships enable the exchange of transaction data, customer due diligence information and case specific intelligence during live investigations.
The FATF suggests that jurisdictions with deeper operational collaboration are seeing faster disruption of criminal networks and more effective asset recovery.
Private to private information sharing is expanding globally
A notable development is the growing legal recognition of information sharing between financial institutions themselves.
The report highlights recent initiatives across the United Kingdom, Singapore, France and Germany that allow banks to exchange intelligence relating to high risk customers, suspicious accounts and financial crime typologies.
These initiatives are designed to prevent criminals from exploiting information gaps between financial institutions.
Legal certainty remains the biggest enabler
While technology continues to improve information sharing, the FATF identifies legal uncertainty as the most significant barrier to implementation.
Successful PPPs typically rely on:
Clear statutory authority
Defined governance frameworks
Strong confidentiality safeguards
Data protection compliance
Measurable performance metrics
The report also highlights the importance of engaging Data Protection Authorities early to ensure AML objectives remain compatible with privacy legislation.
Why It Matters
For regulators, financial institutions, Virtual Asset Service Providers and other reporting entities, the report reinforces that effective AML frameworks are no longer built solely around reporting obligations.
Increasingly, regulatory expectations are moving towards collaboration, intelligence led supervision and timely information exchange between both public and private sector participants.
Jurisdictions considering future AML reforms are likely to continue expanding legal gateways that support secure and proportionate information sharing.
The Riffle Takeaway
The FATF’s latest report reflects a broader evolution in global AML policy. Information sharing is moving beyond compliance towards collaborative financial crime prevention, where regulators, law enforcement agencies and private institutions work together to identify risks earlier and respond more effectively.
As financial crime becomes increasingly sophisticated, jurisdictions that establish trusted, legally supported Public Private Partnerships are likely to be better positioned to strengthen the effectiveness of their AML and CFT frameworks.
