BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union’s new Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) will be based in Frankfurt, Germany, the Belgian Presidency of the EU announced on Thursday.
“Deal! The EU Council and European Parliament agreed that the new European Anti-Money Laundering Authority will be located in Frankfurt,” the Belgian presidency said in a statement on X.
It added that AMLA will play a key role in fighting illicit financial activities in the EU. It will have more than 400 staff, and will start operations mid-2025, it said.
Previously lacking any pan-EU authority to control dirty money, Brussels relied on national regulators to enforce its rules, but member states did not always cooperate fully.
Other countries who had applied to host AMLA were Belgium (Brussels), Ireland (Dublin), Spain (Madrid), France (Paris), Italy (Rome), Latvia (Riga), Lithuania (Vilnius) and Austria (Vienna).
(Reporting by Geert De Clercq, writing by Charlotte Van Campenhout, editing by Alexandra Hudson)
