
Anti-money laundering compliance has been a key growth area throughout Europe over the past year, as more and more criminal patterns have been uncovered. Nevertheless, there was a trend towards fewer convictions and penalties between 2020 and 2021, mostly attributable to the restrictions of the pandemic. EMEA proved to be the exception to the rule with financial penalties totaling $3.4 billion, up from $1 billion the year before. Continued strengthening of Anti money laundering compliance has become the key theme for 2022, especially in the light of unprecedented events, such as the sanctions imposed on Russia in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine. Another key trend in anti-money laundering compliance has been an increase in regulation, for example the European Union continued to implement a series of anti-money laundering directives and a review of anti-money laundering compliance legislation is under way in many countries in the region, including the UK.