Austria Financial Market Authority warns consumers to exercise caution with donations and online payments to avoid terrorism financing

Austria's Financial Market Authority (FMA) has published a new edition of its consumer information series “Let’s Talk About Money” focused on terrorism financing, setting out how individuals can become involved unintentionally through seemingly humanitarian donation appeals, misleading collections, or payments made via social media. The FMA highlights that terrorism financing can be difficult to detect because it is often channelled indirectly through associations, aid structures, or small individual amounts. It also explains that financial firms are legally required to assess money laundering and terrorism financing risks, which can lead to customers being asked for additional information about a payment’s purpose or the recipient. The brochure includes specific caution around donation requests circulating on social media and notes that payments in crypto-assets require particular attention, and it provides practical steps for scrutinising appeals and favouring well-known, transparent organisations, including using Austria’s donation quality seal as a reference point.