Egmont Group

The Egmont Group serves as a global platform where Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) collaborate to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and other financial crimes.

What Is the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units?

Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) are national agencies responsible for gathering, analyzing, and sharing information on suspicious financial activities linked to money laundering, terrorist financing, and related crimes. Not being law enforcement bodies, FIUs are reliable interfaces between the authorities and the financial institutions to facilitate the prevention of financial crime.

In 1995, 24 pioneering Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) came together at the Egmont Palace in Brussels to strengthen global cooperation against financial crime. Today, the Group links 181 FIUs globally. The permanent Secretariat headquarters were opened in Ottawa in February 2008.

The Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units aims to offer a secure environment for the sharing of information, enhance operational effectiveness, and facilitate international cooperation.

By providing secure communication means, expert training, technical assistance, and coordination of cross-border investigations, the Egmont Group strengthens AML/CFT worldwide. It enables FIUs to be effective against evolving threats of financial crime.

What Is the Role of the Egmont Group?

The Egmont Group serves the purpose of enabling the secure and effective exchange of information among FIUs. In 2018, the Egmont Group set up the Egmont Centre of FIU Excellence & Leadership (ECOFEL). It is to provide targeted training, guidance, and other programs aimed at strengthening the skills and capabilities of FIUs. ECOFEL is subsidised, in part, by the U.S. Department of State and other supporters.

The Group aids its members through global cooperation, personnel exchanges, and safe applications like the Egmont Secure Web (ESW). It aids in supporting the establishment of FIU autonomy and the strengthening of AML/CFT programs.

The Egmont Group works alongside global bodies such as the United Nations, the G20, and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), and law enforcement partners like Interpol and Europol. These collaborations strengthen the global fight against illicit finance.

What Is the Egmont Secure Web (ESW)?

The Egmont Secure Web (ESW) is an encrypted platform introduced in 1997. Through the ESW,  the FIUs can share financial intelligence in real-time and collaborate on cases. It also provides online forums by which members are able to share trends, exchange typologies, and exchange best practices.

The Egmont Group Secretariat oversees the web, and the ESW provides the means for sensitive information to be protected while facilitating free movement of cooperation across borders.

How does the Egmont Group Work?

The Egmont Group is intended to facilitate international cooperation among Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) in the global war against money laundering, terrorist financing, and other financial crimes. Its activities are structured around a set of core components:

• Heads of Financial Intelligence Units (HoFIU) is a key decision-making body and make membership, organizational, budgetary, and basic principles decisions. The members exchange information regularly through the ESW and meet at least once a year at the Annual Egmont Group Plenary meeting.
• The Egmont Committee is a coordination and consultation body of the Financial Intelligence Unit (HoFIU) and the Working Groups. It supports internal coordination, administration, and international representation. The Committee also oversees the Egmont Group Secretariat activities.
• Working Groups: Egmont Group has four specialized Working Groups, each chaired by a Chair and supported by Vice-Chairs.
• The Information Exchange Working Group (IEWG)
• The Policy and Procedures Working Group (PPWG)
• The Membership, Support, and Compliance Working Group (MSCWG)
• The Technical Assistance and Training Working Group (TATWG)
• Regional Groups: They help achieve the Egmont Group’s objectives of development, cooperation, and experience exchange at the regional level. Members of all FIUs belong to a Regional Group and are represented by Regional Representatives on the Egmont Committee.
• The Egmont Group Secretariat (EGS) is a permanent administrative body to manage day-to-day business and strategic operations. The secretariat hosts the ESW content and consults to the Chair of the Egmont Group
• Egmont Centre of Financial Intelligence Unit Excellence and Leadership (ECOFEL) is dedicated to assisting FIUs in striving towards excellence and leadership. It shares knowledge, builds networks, brings new tools, and enhances closer cooperation with international partners.

Through organizing in this way, the Egmont Group enables secure information exchange between Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) worldwide. In addition, it encourages cooperation between its members and further supports joint efforts in the fight against financial crime.

Where Does the Egmont Group Hold Its Plenary Meetings?

The Egmont Group meets at least once a year in plenary sessions, where FIU leaders and other important stakeholders meet to exchange ideas and plan future strategies. Each session is hosted by a different member state, reflecting the Group’s worldwide presence.

Recent plenaries have been held in Ottawa, Canada; Vienna, Austria; and Buenos Aires, Argentina, marking the Group’s global collaboration in the fight against financial crime.

In 2025, the 31st Plenary was hosted in Luxembourg by the FIU of Luxembourg (CRF), marking the Group’s 30th anniversary. 

How Does the Egmont Group Work with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)?

Egmont Group is closely linked to FATF, the international standard-setter for AML/CFT. FATF issues elaborate recommendations for fighting financial crime, but Egmont Group helps FIUs to put them into practice through secure information exchange.

The two institutions collaborate on projects, including preventing trade-based money laundering and developing risk indicators. This collaboration assists authorities and financial institutions in the identification of suspicious activity.

One such example is the FATF–Egmont 2020–2021 report on trade-based money laundering (TBML). The report provided real-world risk indicators and guidance for identifying illicit financial flows in trade transactions.

What Role Does the Egmont Group Play in Global AML/CFT Efforts?

As the working group of the global Anti-Money Laundering/Counter Financing of Terrorism AML system, the Egmont Group facilitates collaboration against financial crime by facilitating effective information sharing. 

It facilitates member FIUs to better identify and respond to cross-border criminal financial activity. The group supports law enforcement investigations and international standard compliance.

Through training, collaboration, and technical support, the Group improves the skills of Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) around the world. In addition, it plays a key role in protecting the integrity of the global financial system.