AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
Yes, Nigeria was removed from the FATF list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring (the grey list) in a statement dated 24 October 2025. That removes a formal country label, but UK firms still have to assess each customer and transaction for risk, so source-of-funds questions, holds and limits on payments to Nigeria do not disappear. Expect fewer automatic checks over time, not none.
When the news broke in October 2025 that Nigeria was off the grey list, many people in the UK hoped the questions from their bank or remittance app would stop. A year on, some say transfers feel smoother; others still get asked who the recipient is and where the money came from. Both experiences fit the rules.
What FATF actually decided
The Financial Action Task Force publishes two lists. The "black list" is formally the list of high-risk jurisdictions subject to a call for action. The "grey list" is the list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring: countries that have committed to fix weaknesses in their anti-money laundering systems within agreed timeframes.
FATF's statement from its plenary of 22 to 24 October 2025, dated Paris, 24 October 2025, lists Nigeria under "no longer subject to FATF increased monitoring". It says FATF "welcomes Nigeria's significant progress in improving its AML/CFT regime" and that Nigeria should continue working with GIABA, the West African regional body, to sustain its improvements. Burkina Faso, Mozambique and South Africa were removed at the same time.
What it changed in UK rules
UK firms follow the Money Laundering Regulations 2017. Regulation 33 says when a firm must apply enhanced due diligence: extra checks and closer monitoring on top of the standard ones.
- The UK used to keep its own list of high-risk third countries in Schedule 3ZA. legislation.gov.uk shows that schedule was omitted from 23 January 2024. An AAT Comment summary from November 2025 explained that UK rules then took their list from FATF publications, which is why the grey list mattered to UK firms.
- The text of regulation 33 on legislation.gov.uk, up to date to 23 October 2026 and reflecting an amendment from 30 June 2026, makes enhanced due diligence mandatory for business with a person established in a "FATF call for action country", meaning a country on FATF's high-risk call-for-action list.
- Nigeria was on the increased monitoring list, not the call-for-action list, and is now on neither.
So the formal country trigger has gone. A UK firm no longer has a regulatory label telling it that every Nigerian transaction is high risk.
Firms also take time to rewrite their own policies. A bank's internal country rating, its transaction monitoring rules and its staff guidance are reviewed on its own timetable, so a change at FATF in October 2025 may have reached your app's screening months later, or not yet. That is one reason readers report different experiences with different providers over the same period.
What it does not change
Regulation 33 also makes firms weigh risk factors case by case. Its geographical factors include countries identified by credible sources as having weak anti-money laundering systems, significant levels of corruption or other crime, sanctions, or links to terrorism. Regulation 33(7) adds that one factor alone does not always make a situation high risk. Firms still have to use judgement.
Regulation 28 keeps the everyday checks in place for every customer, wherever the money goes: verify identity, understand the purpose and intended nature of the relationship or transaction, and monitor it on an ongoing basis, including source of funds where necessary. FATF itself says its standards "do not envisage de-risking, or cutting-off entire classes of customers" and call for a risk-based approach. That cuts both ways: firms should not block all Nigerian payments, and they should not stop looking at unusual ones either.
| Likely to ease | Likely to stay |
|---|---|
| Blanket enhanced checks applied only because the destination is Nigeria | Identity checks when you open an account or raise limits |
| Some firms' internal country risk ratings, as they review them | Questions on large or unusual amounts, or a sudden change in your pattern |
| Fraud holds on new payees, and money mule screening |
For the reasons a bank might still look closely, see why UK banks still run extra checks on payments to Nigeria.
How to keep your transfers moving
- Send from an account in your own name, to a recipient whose name matches the Nigerian account.
- Keep a simple record of why you send: rent for a parent, school fees, a project. See keeping records of remittances.
- For a large one-off amount, have payslips, a sale document or savings statements ready before you press send; see when a provider asks for source of funds.
- Answer questions promptly through the app's own channels. A delayed reply usually means a delayed payment.
Where Pryme fits
Pryme accounts hold GBP, NGN, USD and EUR with local details for each, and Send shows the rate and the fee before you approve. Statements and receipts can be generated as verifiable documents with VerifyDoc.ai (receipts), which helps when a provider asks you to evidence a payment. Outside Nigeria, Pryme's activities are carried out through regulated partners.
Questions people ask
When did Nigeria come off the FATF grey list?
FATF's statement dated 24 October 2025, from its 22 to 24 October 2025 plenary, lists Nigeria as no longer subject to increased monitoring.
Will my UK bank stop asking about my transfers to Nigeria?
Not entirely. UK rules still require firms to understand the purpose of transactions and monitor them, so large or unusual payments can still be questioned.
Is Nigeria on the UK high-risk country list?
The UK's own Schedule 3ZA list was omitted in January 2024. As regulation 33 reads in October 2026, the mandatory trigger is a FATF call-for-action country, and Nigeria is not on that list.
Why did FATF put Nigeria on the grey list?
FATF placed it under increased monitoring to address strategic weaknesses in its anti-money laundering system; the October 2025 statement says Nigeria made significant progress and should sustain it with GIABA.
Sources
- FATF: Jurisdictions under increased monitoring, 24 October 2025 · accessed Oct 2026
- legislation.gov.uk: Money Laundering Regulations 2017, regulation 33 (up to date to 23 Oct 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- legislation.gov.uk: Money Laundering Regulations 2017, Schedule 3ZA (omitted 23 Jan 2024) · accessed Oct 2026
- AAT Comment: Updated list of high-risk and other monitored jurisdictions as of October 2025 (20 Nov 2025) · accessed Oct 2026
- legislation.gov.uk: Money Laundering Regulations 2017, regulation 28 (up to date to 21 Oct 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.