South Korea — Country Risk Report
South Korea (Asia Pacific • East Asia). Risk report as of the 19 Jun 2026 FATF plenary.
Moderate country risk, with AML/CFT effectiveness gaps. South Korea's country risk score is 3.8/10, placing it in the moderate-risk band. The principal score driver is AML/CFT effectiveness, contributing 2.3 of 3.8 points. Separately, the treatment overlays show that South Korea is not currently FATF grey- or black-listed, and that South Korea is not subject to comprehensive country-wide sanctions and has no direct country-level programme identified. Firms should apply additional scrutiny where exposure involves state-linked entities, restricted sectors, sensitive technology, dual-use goods or politically exposed counterparties.
Recommended treatment
Standard due diligence for most relationships, with enhanced checks where defined risk triggers are present.
At a glance
- FATF status: Not currently listed (one indicator only; it does not set the overall country risk rating by itself)
- No direct country-level sanctions programme identified; sanctions remain a legal treatment overlay and applicable lists must still be screened.
- Governance and institutions: 2.7/10
- Corruption (CPI 2025): 63/100, rank #31 of 182
- Enforcement: 1 live regulator feed; current totals are loaded from the live evidence API
Country Risk Score: 3.8/10 (Moderate)
Higher score means higher country risk (global average 5.5). Full information available. Composite score. Some evidence is older. Enforcement activity and CPI are context only; FATF listing and sanctions are regulatory overlays except the labelled FATF listing status used where no mutual evaluation exists.
All three underlying risk pillars are available. All three underlying risk pillars are available and weighted using the published formula. Weight sensitivity 3.7–4.0/10.
How this score was calculated
- AML/CFT effectiveness: 5.2/10 — 45% of this score
- Technical compliance: 2.8/10 — 20% of this score
- Governance and institutions: 2.7/10 — 35% of this score
Sanctions treatment: No direct programme identified. FATF treatment: none.
Show the exact calculation
effectiveness 5.2 × 45% + safeguards 2.8 × 20% + governance 2.7 × 35% = 3.8; sanctions and FATF listing are overlays except a labelled FATF listing substitute where no mutual evaluation exists
Principal risk drivers
- AML/CFT effectiveness: 5.2/10 × 45% = 2.3 points
- Governance and institutions: 2.7/10 × 35% = 0.9 points
- Technical compliance: 2.8/10 × 20% = 0.6 points
Mitigating factors
- Not currently on the FATF grey or black list.
- No comprehensive country-wide sanctions programme.
- Comparatively stronger political stability (2.3/10).
- Risk is concentrated in specific counterparties, sectors and transactions rather than applying uniformly.
Business impact
- Customer onboarding (Enhanced): Verify ultimate beneficial ownership and control from more than one source.
- Payments and transactions (Elevated): Review transaction purpose, counterparties and the full payment routing.
- Trade and export activity (Elevated): Screen goods, end users and potential dual-use exposure.
- Corporate clients (Elevated): Assess state ownership, government links and political exposure.
- Ongoing monitoring (Elevated): Alert on ownership changes, new designations and status changes.
Recommended controls
- Verify ultimate beneficial ownership using more than one reliable source.
- Identify state ownership, government influence and politically exposed persons.
- Screen entities, directors and beneficial owners against applicable sanctions lists.
- Apply enhanced review to technology, defence, telecommunications, financial services and dual-use activity.
- Document transaction purpose and source of funds where cross-border structures are complex.
- Escalate unresolved ownership opacity or adverse information to Compliance.
Enhanced due diligence triggers
- State ownership / control
- PEP involvement
- Sensitive / restricted sectors
- Opaque ownership
- Adverse media
- Dual-use goods & technology
- High-risk intermediary routing
FATF status: Not currently listed
South Korea is not on the FATF grey or black list as of the 19 Jun 2026 plenary.
Source details
International sanctions by issuing body
- UN: No
- EU: No
- UK: No
- US: No
No means the complete UN, UK, EU and US review found no direct country-level programme. People or organisations may still appear on sanctions lists.
Government effectiveness and rule of law (World Bank 2024, percentile)
- Government Effectiveness: 80/100
- Regulatory Quality: 71/100
- Rule of Law: 76/100
Enforcement activity
RegActions has 1 live regulator feed mapped to South Korea. Current action totals are loaded from the live evidence API rather than the static registry.
- FSS — Financial Supervisory Service (live feed, 1998-2026)
The composite RegActions Country Risk Score does not use enforcement volume.
Regulators and legal framework
FATF network
FATF member.
Last mutual evaluation: 2020 · report
National regulators
- FSS — Financial Supervisory Service (live feed, 1998-2026)
FIU: Egmont Group member (KoFIU)
Framework signals
- FATF listing: Not currently listed
- International sanctions: no direct country programme identified (legal treatment overlay remains applicable)
- Corruption (CPI 2025): 63/100, rank #31 of 182
- Rule of law (WGI): 2.4/10 risk
Regulatory ecosystem and enforcement visibility
This evidence map is separate from Country Risk v3. It describes official mandates, publication access and RegActions coverage; it does not judge regulatory strength or add points to country risk.
Transparency Index: not scored · Evidence disposition: local-authority-evidence · Mapped official authorities: 5.
Evidence level: Level 1: Identity confirmed. The ladder uses the authority evidenceLevel schema directly and does not infer a level from a URL, site access or RegActions feed count.
- 1. Identity confirmed — The authority and its mandate are evidenced by official directory provenance.
- 2. Regulatory activity visible — A qualified authority-owned route has provisional dated activity in the first-page scan.
- 3. Enforcement visible — A qualified authority-owned enforcement route has provisional dated activity in the first-page scan.
- 4. Score eligible — Shown only when the authority evidence schema explicitly records score-eligible; no authority currently does.
How to read activity and enforcement visibility
Only qualified authority-owned routes can support Level 2 or Level 3. External official context and unqualified candidates do not promote the evidence level. Blocked and unavailable sources remain unknown.
Enforcement visibility: No authority is classified enforcement-visible or score-eligible in the authority evidence schema. Enforcement visibility remains unknown or limited to identity/activity evidence; this is not evidence of no enforcement.
Authorities and mandate evidence
Bank of Korea — Level 1: Identity confirmed · Official site reachable
Mandates: Central bank, Prudential supervision · Access status: Official site reachable · Research/publication snapshot checked: 2026-08-20
Provisional first-page scan signal
Signal: unknown · Observed month count: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown.
No qualified authority-owned dated route supports an activity signal. This is not evidence of inactivity; blocked, external-context, low-frequency and unvalidated sources remain unknown.
Scan contract and precision
automated-first-page-date-scan · 2024-01 to 2026-08 · as of 2026-08-20 · month precision · first-page-only-unvalidated. This is not a validated engagement frequency.
Publication candidates and qualification
- Unqualified publication candidate: Monetary Policy Decisions
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Notice
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Decision-making Process of Monetary Policy
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: decision_register · Source scope: authority-owned · Qualification: manual-review-required · Provisional scan signal: no-dated-first-page-signal · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Monetary Policy Decision (July 16, 2026) The Monetary Policy Board (MPB) of the Bank of Korea decided to raise the Base Rate by 25 basis points, from 2.50% to 2.75% for the intermeeting period.
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: MSB Issuance Notice(03340-2903-0313) 2026.08.18
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Notice for Competitive Bidding on Buybacks of Monetary Stabilization Bonds 2026.08.14
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: MSB Issuance Notice(DC026-1117-0910) 2026.08.13
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: MSB Issuance Notice(03370-2707-0101) 2026.08.11
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: MSB Issuance Notice(DC026-1110-0910) 2026.08.07
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Monetary Policy Decisions
Financial Services Commission/Financial Supervisory Service — Level 1: Identity confirmed · Official site reachable
Mandates: Securities · Access status: Official site reachable · Research/publication snapshot checked: 2026-08-20
Provisional first-page scan signal
Signal: unknown · Observed month count: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown.
No qualified authority-owned dated route supports an activity signal. This is not evidence of inactivity; blocked, external-context, low-frequency and unvalidated sources remain unknown.
Scan contract and precision
automated-first-page-date-scan · 2024-01 to 2026-08 · as of 2026-08-20 · month precision · first-page-only-unvalidated. This is not a validated engagement frequency.
No publication candidate is qualified. Regulatory activity and enforcement visibility remain unknown.
Financial Supervisory Service — Level 1: Identity confirmed · Official site reachable
Mandates: Prudential supervision, Insurance · Access status: Official site reachable · Research/publication snapshot checked: 2026-08-20
Provisional first-page scan signal
Signal: unknown · Observed month count: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown.
No qualified authority-owned dated route supports an activity signal. This is not evidence of inactivity; blocked, external-context, low-frequency and unvalidated sources remain unknown.
Scan contract and precision
automated-first-page-date-scan · 2024-01 to 2026-08 · as of 2026-08-20 · month precision · first-page-only-unvalidated. This is not a validated engagement frequency.
Publication candidates and qualification
- Official authority-owned enforcement route: Unfair Trading and Enforcement
Authority-owned and approved for the human-reviewed route contract.
Route type: enforcement_archive · Source scope: authority-owned · Qualification: approved-for-human-contract · Provisional scan signal: no-dated-first-page-signal · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Official authority-owned enforcement route: Unfair Trading and Enforcement
Financial Supervisory Service — Level 1: Identity confirmed · Official site reachable
Mandates: Pensions · Access status: Official site reachable · Research/publication snapshot checked: 2026-08-20
Provisional first-page scan signal
Signal: unknown · Observed month count: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown.
No qualified authority-owned dated route supports an activity signal. This is not evidence of inactivity; blocked, external-context, low-frequency and unvalidated sources remain unknown.
Scan contract and precision
automated-first-page-date-scan · 2024-01 to 2026-08 · as of 2026-08-20 · month precision · first-page-only-unvalidated. This is not a validated engagement frequency.
Publication candidates and qualification
- Unqualified publication candidate: 제도권 금융회사 조회
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 채권소멸절차 개시공고
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 집합투자기구공시
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 소액해외송금업 조회
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Official authority-owned enforcement route: 검사·제재 제재관련 공시, 과거제재내용공시, 검사징구자료양식, 검사매뉴얼 정보를 제공하는 서비스입니다. 바로가기
Authority-owned and approved for the human-reviewed route contract.
Route type: sanctions_or_penalty_list · Source scope: authority-owned · Qualification: approved-for-human-contract · Provisional scan signal: no-dated-first-page-signal · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 검사결과제재
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 금융용어 사전
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 중소기업 자영업자 금융지원
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 은행
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 생명보험회사
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 손해보험회사
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 금융투자회사
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 저축은행
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 카드사
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 금융회사별 민원/제재현황
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 등록대부업체 통합조회
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 상속인 조회
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 금융자문서비스 안내
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 관련 법규
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 채권소멸 사실공고
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: 제도권 금융회사 조회
Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) — Level 1: Identity confirmed · Official site reachable
Mandates: Financial intelligence · Access status: Official site reachable · Research/publication snapshot checked: 2026-08-20
Provisional first-page scan signal
Signal: unknown · Observed month count: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown.
No qualified authority-owned dated route supports an activity signal. This is not evidence of inactivity; blocked, external-context, low-frequency and unvalidated sources remain unknown.
Scan contract and precision
automated-first-page-date-scan · 2024-01 to 2026-08 · as of 2026-08-20 · month precision · first-page-only-unvalidated. This is not a validated engagement frequency.
Publication candidates and qualification
- Unqualified publication candidate: Announcement more
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Official authority-owned enforcement route: Sanctions Disclosure
Authority-owned and approved for the human-reviewed route contract.
Route type: sanctions_or_penalty_list · Source scope: authority-owned · Qualification: approved-for-human-contract · Provisional scan signal: no-dated-first-page-signal · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Notices/Orders/Rules
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Prior Notice on Enactment/Amendment
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Specified Financial Transaction Information Act (FTRA) FTRA Defines Proliferation Financing as ‘Criminal Proceeds’ Subject to STR
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: UN 1267 Committee Consolidated List – Al-Qaida, Usama bin Laden, the Taliban and other individuals
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: UN Security Council Resolution 1267 Committee
Research candidate only; it is not promoted to an official enforcement or regulatory-update route.
Route type: not classified · Source scope: not classified · Qualification: not classified · Provisional scan signal: not-observable · Observed months: 0 · Latest observed month: unknown
- Unqualified publication candidate: Announcement more
Download regulatory ecosystem PDF · CSV · JSON
Sector exposure
- Banking & payments (Low): No FATF overlay and governance pillar within normal range
- Trade & export controls (Low): No direct sanctions or FATF call-for-action overlay identified
- Crypto & virtual assets (Low): No FATF overlay and effectiveness pillar within normal range
- Real estate & luxury assets (High): BO subscore 6.6/10; CPI context 63/100
- State-linked & procurement (Low): Current risk pillars show no elevated procurement signal
Derived from sanctions tier, FATF listing, World Bank WGI governance and CPI; no per-sector dataset is asserted.
South Korea: analysis
South Korea's profile reflects consistently solid governance. Rule of law (strong) and political stability (strong) are the strongest domains. Corruption (moderate) and voice and accountability (strong) are also at low-risk levels. The CPI reading independently supports the picture. No FATF listing or sanctions apply. South Korea sits well above the world median on the World Bank governance indicators and among the stronger economies in the Asia-Pacific region.
Outlook
South Korea's risk profile is stable and well-governed. No near-term escalation is expected. The country's sophisticated regulatory and judicial institutions provide meaningful structural protections against financial crime. Firms may apply standard, proportionate due diligence for South Korean counterparties.
Key watchpoints
- Monitor any shifts in political stability, given South Korea's active democratic processes and periodic electoral cycles.
- Track regulatory developments in the virtual-asset sector, where South Korea has been an active and evolving jurisdiction.
- Assess any geopolitical spillover risk from the Korean peninsula context, particularly in relation to sanctions evasion typologies linked to North Korea.
- Review correspondent banking and trade-finance exposure against South Korea's strong but evolving AML/CFT framework.
Assessment currency
- FATF status: Not listed (as of 19 Jun 2026)
- Sanctions exposure: None identified (as of Jul 2026)
- Governance (WGI): Latest dataset incorporated (as of 2024)
- Corruption (CPI): 63/100 (as of 2025)
- RegActions assessment: Reviewed (as of 19 Jun 2026)
Public evidence layer
FATF action: none. No FATF call-for-action or increased-monitoring status was identified at the latest plenary. This does not establish low risk.
Contextual signals (not scored)
- FATF network membership: Direct FATF member (present, as of 2026-07)
- EU non-cooperative tax jurisdictions: Not listed in Annex I (absent, as of 2026-02-17)
- Egmont Group FIU: KoFIU (present, as of 2026-07-17)
- Beneficial-ownership register: No live register identified in the source (unavailable, as of 2026-08-23)
- Transparency International CPI: 63/100, rank 31 (present, as of 2025)
Evidence freshness
- FATF monitored-jurisdiction status: current; data 2026-06-19
- FATF mutual evaluation and follow-up ratings: current; data 2026-08-24; follow-up 2024-10; base assessment 2020-04
- World Bank governance indicators: current; data 2024
- UN, UK, EU and US sanctions regimes: current; data 2026-08-30
Contextual signals are public evidence only and do not change the current country-risk score.
Download evidence PDF · CSV · JSON
Contextual risk evidence (not scored)
These eight evidence families provide context only. They do not change the v3.1 headline score. Unavailable means no reviewed, country-comparable evidence is currently ingested; it does not mean the risk is absent.
- Organised crime: Not available. No reviewed country-level organised-crime dataset is currently checked in; no risk value is inferred. Candidate sources are research leads only; they have not been ingested as evidence.
- Fraud and cybercrime: Not available. No reviewed country-level fraud or cybercrime dataset is currently checked in; no risk value is inferred. Candidate sources are research leads only; they have not been ingested as evidence.
- Terrorism and proliferation financing: Not available. No reviewed country-comparable terrorism/proliferation threat dataset is currently checked in; FATF listing status remains a separate overlay. Candidate sources are research leads only; they have not been ingested as evidence.
- Trafficking: Not available. No reviewed country-level trafficking dataset is currently checked in; no risk value is inferred. Candidate sources are research leads only; they have not been ingested as evidence.
- Financial secrecy and offshore exposure: Not available. No reviewed, licence-clean financial-secrecy index is currently checked in; jurisdiction type alone is not used as a proxy. Candidate sources are research leads only; they have not been ingested as evidence.
- Tax cooperation: Not listed in EU Annex I. Annex I is a political/legal tax-cooperation list, not a general AML, corruption, or country-risk score. Source
- Political stability and conflict: 77/100 WGI percentile. WGI is an institutional perception indicator, not a conflict event feed or a prediction of future violence. Source
- Beneficial ownership: Not available. The Open Ownership map is a live-register snapshot and absence means no register was identified in that snapshot, not that no register exists. Candidate sources are research leads only; they have not been ingested as evidence.
Regional peer scores
- North Korea: 8.6/10 (Very high)
- Myanmar: 7.8/10 (Very high)
- Afghanistan: 7.7/10 (Very high)
- Laos: 7.3/10 (Very high)
- Pakistan: 7.1/10 (Very high)
- Tonga: 7.1/10 (Very high)
FAQ
Is South Korea on the FATF grey list?
No. South Korea is not on the FATF grey or black list as of the 19 Jun 2026 plenary. FATF listing is one AML indicator; absence from the list does not by itself make South Korea low risk. The next FATF plenary review is scheduled for Oct 2026.
Is South Korea subject to sanctions?
No country-level programme was identified. In the approved RegActions snapshot, no comprehensive or targeted country-wide sanctions programme was found for South Korea, but individual listed persons may still exist, so firms should continue to screen counterparties against the applicable lists.
What is South Korea's country risk rating?
RegActions rates South Korea at 3.8/10 (Moderate risk), where a higher score means higher country risk. The v3 score combines AML/CFT effectiveness, technical compliance, and governance and institutions. FATF listing and sanctions are shown as overlays and do not add points. Transparency International's 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index scores South Korea 63/100 (rank #31 of 182) as context only.
What due diligence applies to South Korea?
Standard due diligence for most relationships, with enhanced checks where defined risk triggers are present. This is decision-support based on South Korea's FATF status, governance and sanctions signals, and is not a substitute for a firm's own risk assessment.
How much enforcement activity is tracked for South Korea?
RegActions has live enforcement coverage from 1 regulator in South Korea. The current action total is loaded from the source-linked evidence view rather than this country-risk snapshot. Enforcement volume measures regulator activity, not country risk, so it is shown as evidence but never fed into the RegActions Country Risk Score.
Source: FATF black & grey lists · World Bank WGI (CC BY 4.0 — World Bank WGI) · TI CPI (CC BY-ND 4.0 — Transparency International, display only)