Basel AML Index 2021

This is the 10th Public Edition of the Basel AML Index.

The Basel AML Index is an independent annual ranking that assesses the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing (ML/TF) around the world.

Published by the Basel Institute on Governance since 2012, it provides risk scores based on data from 17 publicly available sources such as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), Transparency International, the World Bank and the World Economic Forum. The risk scores cover five domains:

  1. Quality of AML/CFT Framework
  2. Bribery and Corruption
  3. Financial Transparency and Standards
  4. Public Transparency and Accountability
  5. Legal and Political Risks

The Basel AML Index is developed and maintained by the Basel Institute's International Centre for Asset Recovery.

Note: The ranking contained in the Public Edition report was updated on 23 November 2021 following a correction to the original source data used to calculate Mauritania's risk score. The same correction was made to the online ranking table.

Public vs Expert and Expert Plus Editions

The Public Edition of the Basel AML Index 2021 covers 110 countries with sufficient data to calculate a reliable ML/TF risk score. Data requirements this year have been raised to include at least a fourth-round FATF Mutual Evaluation Report, which measures effectiveness as well as technical compliance with the FATF’s AML/CFT standards.

A comprehensive list of scores and sub-indicators for 203 countries is available in the Expert Edition, a subscription-based service used by companies and financial institutions as an ML/TF country risk-rating tool for compliance and risk assessment purposes.

The Expert Edition Plus option offers a detailed comparative analysis of the FATF Mutual Evaluation Reports. This allows users to assess each FATF recommendation individually by focusing on specific compliance needs, for example due diligence or terrorist financing regulations. It also includes special reports on ML/TF risks in the ML/TF risks in Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Gibraltar and the Cayman Islands.

Subscription to the Expert and Expert Plus editions is free for public-sector, international, non-profit and academic organisations.

See the website at index.baselgovernance.org for more information or request an account.

Cover page of Basel AML Index_2021
Date published
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Basel Institute on Governance