FACE IT: Finance Against Child Exploitation
FACE IT is a global initiative to mobilise financial responses to child sexual exploitation.
About FACE IT
The financial system has become a key component of technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation and abuse, enabling offenders to fund abuse and profit from it. Offenders use digital platforms to coordinate exploitation and bank transfers, payment platforms, cryptocurrencies and online gaming currencies to make and receive payments connected to the abuse.
Financial systems provide a unique opportunity to identify sexual exploitation that might otherwise remain hidden. Unlike many traditional approaches, financial intelligence can help detect abuse when victims are unable to report, evidence is dispersed across jurisdictions, or offenders operate anonymously online.
THE ‘FOLLOW THE MONEY’ INITIATIVE
FACE IT is a global initiative led by ECPAT International that seeks to strengthen the role of financial systems in preventing and responding to child sexual exploitation and abuse.
The initiative brings together financial institutions, financial intelligence units, regulators, law enforcement agencies, technology companies, researchers, and civil society organisations to explore how financial intelligence can be transformed into a powerful child protection tool.
WHAT WE DO
Evidence and Learning
We document and analyse existing responses to the financial dimensions of child sexual exploitation and abuse, for example, information-sharing between banks and law enforcement to identify suspicious payment patterns, to generate evidence on promising practices, barriers, and lessons that can support more effective collaboration across sectors.
Partnerships and Coalition Building
We bring together actors that do not traditionally work together to share experiences, build trust, and develop practical approaches to identifying and disrupting financial flows linked to child sexual exploitation.
Policy and Regulatory Engagement
We work embed child protection in broader financial governance frameworks by contributing evidence to financial crime and regulatory discussions.
Innovation and Detection
We explore how emerging financial typologies, behavioural indicators, and risk assessment models can strengthen the detection of TF-CSEA with the longer term aim of, supporting practical tools and guidance that financial institutions can integrate into existing compliance and risk-management systems.
FACE IT examines how financial systems and digital payments facilitate child sexual exploitation and abuse, focusing on:
- Technology-facilitated exploitation: payments linked to child sexual abuse material, livestreamed exploitation, grooming, and sexual extortion.
- Digital monetisation: exploitation involving online gaming, virtual currencies, and cryptocurrency.
- Exploitation across settings: financial dimensions of child trafficking and sexual exploitation, including in humanitarian contexts and travel and tourism.
CASE STUDIES
Drawing on experiences from different countries, the series explores how financial institutions, financial intelligence units, law enforcement, civil society and other actors are working together to strengthen the prevention, detection and disruption of child sexual exploitation. The case studies document emerging practices, collaboration models and lessons that can inform stronger financial-sector responses to child sexual exploitation globally.
GET INVOLVED
The success of this initiative depends on collaboration across sectors and regions. We welcome engagement from:
- Financial institutions
- Financial intelligence units
- Regulators and policymakers
- Law enforcement agencies
- Technology companies
- Researchers and academic institutions
- Child protection organisations
- Philanthropic and funding partners
Together, we can strengthen the ability of financial systems to detect, disrupt, and prevent the sexual exploitation of children.