In early August 2026, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System issued a proposed rule updating anti-money-laundering and countering-the-financing-of-terrorism (AML/CFT) requirements for Board-supervised banking organizations, including state member banks, bank holding companies, savings and loan holding companies, and US operations of foreign banking organizations.
The proposal aligns the Federal Reserve’s expectations with FinCEN’s modernized AML program framework under the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, formally requiring covered institutions to implement effective, risk-based, and reasonably designed AML/CFT programs, to establish written governance and board-approval processes, to conduct enterprise-wide risk assessments that incorporate FinCEN’s national AML/CFT priorities, and to reinforce independent testing and training.
It also updates supervisory expectations for cross-border banking activities, correspondent relationships, and technology-enabled monitoring.
For Brazilian and Portuguese banks with US branches or agencies, and for cross-border groups that rely on US correspondent accounts and dollar-clearing relationships, the rule signals continued tightening of AML/CFT oversight and heightened scrutiny of governance, sanctions-screening, and beneficial-ownership controls.
Comments will be due after Federal Register publication, and institutions should begin gap analyses against current programs.
Source: Ncontracts