The Wolfsberg Group

The Wolfsberg Group was created in 2000 as an association of thirteen global banks which aims to develop frameworks and guidance for the management of financial crime risks, particularly with respect to Know Your Customer, Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing policies. The Group came together at the Château Wolfsberg, in north-eastern Switzerland, to work on drafting anti-money laundering guidelines for Private Banking. The Wolfsberg Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Principles for Private Banking were subsequently published in October 2000. Since the first set of AML Principles was released, the Group has published a significant number of documents, whether in the form of Principles, Guidance, Frequently Asked Questions or Statements. These include, amongst many others, a Statement on the Financing of Terrorism, Anti-Money Laundering Principles for Correspondent Banking, Guidance on a Risk Based Approach for Managing Money Laundering Risks, FAQs on Politically Exposed Persons, Trade Finance Principles, Guidance on Anti-Bribery & Corruption Compliance Programmes and a statement endorsing measures to enhance the transparency of international wire transfers to promote the effectiveness of global AML and CTF programmes. Materials published by the Wolfsberg Group are designed to provide financial institutions with an industry perspective on effective financial crime risk management.