In remarks at the European Anti-Financial Crime Summit in Dublin, Central Bank of Ireland Director of Horizontal Supervision Patricia Dunne set out the Bank’s financial crime supervisory priorities and expectations for firms, describing financial crime risks as significant to severe in its broader supervisory outlook. The speech highlighted continued risk-based supervision of money laundering, terrorist financing, sanctions evasion, fraud and market abuse, with banking, payments and e-money, investment funds and the crypto-asset sector identified as key areas of focus. Banks were described as generally having mature anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism frameworks, but boards and senior management were told to keep them aligned with changing risks, especially new digital banking models. In payments and e-money, the Bank said much deeper work is required on governance, systems, controls and firms’ understanding of money laundering and terrorist financing risks, particularly at newer firms. The investment fund sector remains under close scrutiny because of its size and international exposure, while the opaque and fast-moving crypto-asset sector will face supervisory attention on anti-money laundering and fraud-prevention controls. The Bank said it will use targeted inspections and an enhanced Risk Evaluation Questionnaire to test firms’ understanding of exposures and the proportionality of controls, with the questionnaire being rolled out to all sectors over the course of the year. It also flagged a 2026 thematic review of suspicious transaction reporting in the funds sector and a major cross-sectoral review of fraud controls and firms’ treatment of fraud victims. The fraud focus comes against a backdrop of EUR 160m in total payment fraud in Ireland in 2024, including EUR 66m in losses, and is reinforced by Consumer Protection Code requirements for firms to protect consumers against frauds and scams, support affected customers and meet their liability obligations when customers fall victim to fraud.
Central Bank of Ireland 2026-04-29
Central Bank of Ireland sets out 2026 financial crime priorities with suspicious transaction reporting review and fraud controls
The Central Bank of Ireland used a speech at the European Anti-Financial Crime Summit to warn that financial crime risks are “significant to severe” and to set supervisory priorities across money laundering, terrorist financing, sanctions evasion, fraud and market abuse, with banking, payments and e-money, investment funds and crypto-assets as key focus sectors. It signalled deeper scrutiny of governance, systems and controls in newer payments and e-money firms, continued close oversight of funds, and targeted attention to AML and fraud controls in crypto-assets. The Bank will use targeted inspections, an enhanced Risk Evaluation Questionnaire, a 2026 thematic review of suspicious transaction reporting in funds and a cross-sectoral review of fraud controls and treatment of fraud victims, against EUR 160m in payment fraud in Ireland in 2024.