Spain creates national AML council to coordinate public-private financial crime oversight

Spain has formally set up a National Council for the Prevention of Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and the Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction. For banks, gambling-related businesses and other regulated sectors, the point is not a new enforcer with its own fines — it is a standing forum where authorities and industry can compare notes on risk.

1. An order published in the Spanish Official State Gazette on 22 October 2026 creates the new Council as part of Spain’s broader effort to improve intelligence sharing and identify emerging money laundering risks. The body covers AML, terrorist financing and the financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
2. The Council will operate under the Commission for the Prevention of Money Laundering and Monetary Offences. Its mandate is advisory and consultative, so it is meant to support coordination rather than act as a new enforcement authority with independent sanctioning powers.
3. Spain is setting up a formal public-private channel for communication between government institutions and private-sector entities that fall within its anti-money laundering rules. Public bodies will have permanent representatives, while regulated sectors will be represented through non-permanent members.
4. For high-risk businesses, the practical value is the information flow. Banks, gambling-related entities and other covered sectors may each see different pieces of customer and transaction activity, and the Council is designed to help authorities spot patterns that single firms may miss on their own.
5. Its functions include promoting cooperation, facilitating the exchange of strategic and operational information, and contributing to Spain’s national risk analysis and anti-money laundering strategy. It may also issue reports, guidance and recommendations on vulnerabilities, emerging threats and improvements to the national prevention system. The Council may create an executive committee of up to ten members and specialist technical committees, and it must meet at least once a year.

The important detail for PSPs and other regulated businesses is the legal boundary: the Council’s reports and recommendations will not be binding. Existing legislation and the relevant supervisory authorities still determine each entity’s obligations, while the Council is there to shape the conversation, not rewrite the rulebook.