By Belize Live News Staff: Belize has emerged as a global leader in anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CFT), achieving record-breaking results in the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force’s (CFATF) latest evaluation.
The report highlights Belize’s exceptional technical compliance, with the country rated Fully Compliant on 38 of FATF’s 40 Recommendations and Largely Compliant on the remaining two. This positions Belize as the global leader in compliance, surpassing previous record-holder Qatar.
Effectiveness ratings also place Belize among the Caribbean’s top performers, with substantial effectiveness in five critical areas, including a regional first for countering proliferation financing.
These results mark a dramatic turnaround for Belize, which was grey-listed in 2011. The government attributed this achievement to coordinated efforts across public and private sectors.
Belize now joins an elite group of countries in Regular Follow-up status, avoiding the FATF’s “grey list” or “black list.” The nation remains committed to strengthening its financial frameworks amid evolving risks.