The Federal Government has welcomed the decision of the European Commission to remove Nigeria from the European Union’s list of high-risk third countries for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT), describing it as a major boost to the country’s global financial standing.
In a statement signed by the Director, Information and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Finance, Mohammed Manga, the decision is contained in a European Commission Delegated Regulation released this week, which amended Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675.
It comes months after Nigeria was removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) list of Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring in October 2025, following the successful completion of its FATF Action Plan.
Reacting to the development, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, attributed the achievement to the leadership and reform drive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, noting that the administration placed AML/CFT reforms at the centre of its economic governance and financial system stability agenda.
According to Edun, President Tinubu’s political will and reform vision ensured effective inter-agency coordination, sustained engagement with international partners, and the full implementation of key legal, regulatory and institutional measures needed to address deficiencies previously identified in Nigeria’s AML/CFT framework.
The European Commission, in its assessment, acknowledged that Nigeria had significantly strengthened the effectiveness of its AML/CFT regime and satisfactorily addressed the technical and strategic gaps highlighted by the FATF. Consequently, Nigeria was removed from the EU’s list of high-risk third countries, alongside other jurisdictions that recorded similar progress.
The development is expected to ease enhanced due diligence requirements for Nigerian individuals, businesses and financial institutions dealing with European counterparts, improve correspondent banking relationships and boost investor confidence, while further integrating Nigeria into the global financial system.
Edun also commended the contributions of key stakeholders, including financial sector regulators, law enforcement agencies, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, supervisory authorities, the judiciary and private sector operators, whose roles he said were critical to the success of the reforms.
While welcoming the decision, the minister reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to sustaining and deepening AML/CFT reforms, stressing that the country would continue to work closely with the FATF, the European Union and other international partners to ensure a resilient, transparent and globally aligned financial system.
The removal of Nigeria from both the FATF grey list and the European Union’s high-risk list, the government said, sends a strong positive signal to the international community that the country is firmly on the path of reform, transparency and economic renewal under President Tinubu’s administration.
