The Action Plan on Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism is a joint initiative between the IMF and the World Bank. In this initiative, the two organizations have pledged to apply their areas of expertise to international efforts against money laundering and terrorist financing.

According to the IMF's Factsheet entitled, The IMF and the Fight against Money Laundering and the Financing Of Terrorism (September 2004):

"...Money laundering can have a range of severe macroeconomic consequences on countries. It can cause unpredictable changes in money demand, pose risks to the soundness of financial institutions and financial systems, contaminate legal financial transactions, and increase the volatility of international capital flows and exchange rates due to unanticipated cross-border transfers. Money laundering can also have a dampening effect on foreign direct investment if a country’s commercial and financial sectors are perceived to be under the control and influence of organized crime."

The Internet enables non-traditional financial institutions (such as informal fund transfer systems and exchange bureaus) to carry out banking functions in a manner that is less regulated than the activities of traditional institutions. To address these players, the joint IMF/World Bank pilot program has called for more expertise on the part of administrators.