By Bhavin Shah, Ralph Stobwasser, Bryan Stirewalt, May Mhanna, Pooja Shah, Anmol Chandwani, Shivna Bhatia, and Sarah Morgan

The global financial landscape is under siege by increasingly sophisticated financial and economic crimes. Money laundering, fraud, corruption, and market abuse pose ever-growing risks, compounded by rapid advancements in AI, virtual assets, and decentralized finance (DeFi). 

Our Global Financial and Economic Crime Risk Outlook 2025 provides an in-depth, data-driven analysis of these emerging threats, helping businesses navigate the complexities of financial crime with confidence. Featuring the Secretariat Economic Crime Index (SECI), our report classifies 177 nations into distinct risk categories — Transparent Titans, Vigilant Players, Reactive Reformers, and Regulatory Laggards — offering an unprecedented level of clarity in country-specific financial crime risk. 

With illicit financial flows projected to hit USD 4.5–6 trillion by 2030, traditional risk assessments no longer cut it. Whether you’re a financial institution, regulatory body, or multinational corporation, the SECI index and our country-by-country analysis break down jurisdictional vulnerabilities and emerging crime trends, providing data-driven, technology-enabled strategies to help you strengthen your compliance frameworks and minimize your exposure to financial crime in a rapidly evolving world.   

Stay Ahead with Cutting-Edge Financial Crime Intelligence  

To address these growing threats, our risk professionals provide critical insights and best practices to help you navigate today’s financial crime landscape. This report is your essential guide providing a clear, objective risk evaluation that will help you to identify risks, mitigate threats, and safeguard your organization. 

In the report, our experts offer vital knowledge and resources, including the Secretariat Economic Crime Index (SECI), a composite index (ranging from 0 (minimal risk) to 4 (maximum risk)) that integrates three crucial dimensions of economic crime — money laundering, corruption, and organized crime — into a unified, actionable risk profile. 

Key SECI Takeaways 

To assess global risk disparities, we ranked 177 countries according to their SECI scores. These countries were then categorized into four tiers, reflecting their levels of transparency, the effectiveness of their anti-crime frameworks, and their overall exposure to economic crime. 

• Transparent Titans: 19 countries, with SECI scores ranging from 0 to 1.53.
  These nations demonstrate transparency, robust anti-financial crime frameworks, and strong enforcement mechanisms, positioning them as leaders in preventing financial crime. Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Luxembourg, and Estonia rank among the best-governed nations, with strict financial regulations and low corruption levels.  
• Vigilant Players: 64 countries, with SECI scores between 1.54 and 2.18.
  The countries actively implement and evolve measures to address financial crimes and improve regulatory frameworks, proactively strengthening their systems against emerging risks. Some renowned financial hubs fall into this category, as their high exposure to financial crime risks necessitates constant regulatory evolution. 
• Reactive Reformers: 78 countries, with SECI scores between 2.19 and 2.83.
  These nations exhibit weak anti-crime frameworks, significant regulatory gaps, and a higher prevalence of high-risk activities, facing challenges in effectively combating financial crimes due to insufficient regulatory measures.  
• Regulatory Laggards: 16 countries, with SECI scores between 2.84 and 4.00.
  These nations are characterized by the dominance of illicit financial flows, deeply ingrained corruption, and systemic economic crime, rendering them vulnerable to widespread financial crime that often forms a core part of their functioning. Myanmar, South Sudan, Afghanistan, Venezuela, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo exhibit the highest SECI scores of the nations profiled. 

Emerging Trends Shaping the 2025 Financial Crime Landscape 

Our report also breaks down the top financial and economic crime trends shaping the next decade, discussing:  

1. Disruptive AI technology and deepfake frauds — how can organizations enhance compliance as AI-fraud becomes increasingly sophisticated? 
2. Virtual assets risks — as cybercriminals continue to exploit gaps in regulation and compliance, how can you stay prepared? 
3. Real-Time Transaction Monitoring (RTTM) — what do you need to consider when integrating RTTM into your protection strategy? 
4. Regulatory Technology (RegTech) integration — how can your business leverage RegTech solutions responsibly? 
5. Leveraging behavioral biometrics for advanced fraud detection and prevention — what are the benefits and challenges of integrating this modern fraud prevention strategy with your existing regulatory frameworks? 
6. Proliferation financing — how is the global financial ecosystem responding to increasing PF-related activity? 
7. Convergence of sanctions and AML/CFT governance — with evasion techniques evolving as quickly as compliance efforts, what actions can regulators take? 
8. Rise of white-collar frauds and external threats — what are the predominant fraud trends that will shape the financial crime landscape in 2025, and how could they affect you? 
9. Cross-border data sharing — what progress is being made toward global implementation of consistent, accurate, and accessible financial transaction data sharing practices? 
10. Focus on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors — why does ESG compliance matter, and how does it impact your business? 

Authors

Bhavin Shah
Managing Director

Ralph Stobwasser
Managing Director

Bryan Stirewalt
Senior Advisor

May Mhanna
Managing Director

Pooja Shah
Associate Director

Anmol Chandwani
Senior Associate

Shivna Bhatia
Associate

Sarah Morgan
Manager