The FATF Recommendations represent the international standard for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing. Comprising forty distinct but interrelated measures, they form the basis of global financial compliance frameworks adopted by over 200 jurisdictions. While the recommendations cover everything from customer due diligence and beneficial ownership to supervision and sanctions, only one of them (Recommendation 16) is specifically and directly concerned with wire transfers.

Recommendation 16 aims to ensure that all wire transfers are fully traceable by requiring financial institutions to include specific information about both the sender and the recipient in each transaction. This rule applies to both domestic and cross-border transfers and is designed to help authorities detect, investigate and prevent the misuse of financial channels for criminal purposes.

Under this recommendation, cross-border wire transfers must include the name and account number of both the originator and the beneficiary, as well as either the originator’s address, national identity number, or date and place of birth. This information must accompany the transaction through every step of the payment chain, even when intermediaries are involved. Domestic wire transfers may be subject to simplified measures, provided that full traceability is maintained by other means.

Financial institutions acting as intermediaries are required to retain all the information they receive and ensure that it is not lost during processing. The receiving institution must check whether the transfer is complete and take appropriate, risk-based action if information is missing. This may include suspending the payment, contacting the sending institution, or notifying the authorities.

While transfers below a specified threshold (commonly set at 1,000 US dollars or euros) are subject to lighter requirements, they must still be traceable. Anonymous transfers or those that circumvent these rules pose a clear risk and are discouraged under FATF standards.

Recommendation 16 underpins global rules such as the UK and EU Wire Transfer Regulation and the Travel Rule adopted in multiple jurisdictions. Its implementation is a critical part of building transparent, resilient and secure financial systems capable of deterring and disrupting illicit finance.