Good morning. The European Union is working on a new approach for flagging countries with weak anti-money-laundering laws after the bloc’s previous attempt to create a blacklist failed earlier this year. A newly proposed methodology for designating high-risk countries is aimed at addressing concerns about transparency in the previous process, according to documents published ahead of a meeting of the EU’s council of finance ministers, Risk & Compliance Journal’s Kristin Broughton reports.

The Council of Economic and Financial Affairs is scheduled Thursday to discuss the proposed methodology, which is intended to give countries a clearer sense of how they could be designated as high-risk, as well as a process to respond. The timeline for final approval was unclear Wednesday.

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The EU is required under a pair of directives adopted by the bloc in recent years to identify countries that are susceptible to moving dirty money. But creating a blacklist has proven to be politically fraught. The previous blacklist from the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, was rejected in March by member states, following pushback from Saudi Arabia, which was on the list, and the U.S., which had some of its territories listed.

Under the newly proposed EU methodology, the European Commission would adopt high-risk designations of the Financial Action Task Force, the anti-money-laundering standard-setter, while adding other requirements to “top up” the FATF’s action plans as it deems necessary, according to the documents published ahead of Thursday’s meeting. Additionally, it would establish country-specific benchmarks for evaluating jurisdictions, and countries would have 12 months to address the EU’s concerns before appearing on a blacklist, the documents said.

The U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office at times has struggled to appropriately staff cases and process digital materials, according to Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate, an independent government inspector, which reviewed six randomly selected SFO cases.

The amount of time it has taken the SFO to resolve certain cases has been the subject of scrutiny in the U.K. The agency’s new director, Lisa Osofsky, has signaled that she will move to close cases that aren’t progressing toward a resolution, Risk & Compliance Journal’s Dylan Tokar reports.

The Cayman Islands government plans to establish a public registry of corporate owners in an effort to fight financial crime.

The commitment puts it in line with international standards, Cayman Islands officials said Wednesday in a statement. A European Union money-laundering directive adopted last year requires countries to establish public registries of beneficial owners.

“We stand ready to work collaboratively with other jurisdictions as a common approach emerges in the design and maintenance of verified beneficial ownership registers,” Tara Rivers, minister of financial services, said in the statement.

The commitment attracted praise from financial services executives and human rights advocates. Global Witness, an anticorruption group, called on other British Overseas Territories, such as the British Virgin Islands, to follow suit, citing their reputation as corporate tax havens.

—Kristin Broughton

As the Turkish military began an offensive in Syria to seize territory held by U.S.-backed Kurdish forces, U.S. senators have started drafting legislation to impose sanctions​ against the assets of senior Turkish officials, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

“We can’t abandon the Kurds now. We can’t turn it over to Turkey. To think that will work is really delusional and dangerous,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) said on Fox News. “Pray for the Kurds,” he said.

President Trump said he would back sanctions, “and much tougher than sanctions,” if Mr. Erdogan doesn’t proceed in a humane fashion. He didn’t elaborate on what that retaliation would be or what sort of action would be considered out of bounds.

• The Securities and Exchange Commission has sent letters to companies that administer retirement plans for teachers and other government workers, opening a probe of practices in a market that consumer advocates contend is subject to abuse. The regulator “is conducting an investigation” to determine “if violations of the federal securities laws have occurred,” said an SEC document The Wall Street Journal reviewed.
   
• OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma’s plan to turn over its operations to creditors and see its owners, the Sacklers, exit the opioid business is contingent on first resolving U.S. Justice Department probes, court filings show.
   
• The White House has signed off on special licenses for some U.S. companies to do some business with Chinese telecom giant Huawei, according to a person familiar with the process.
   
• Global miners have spent years trying to shrink their carbon footprint. Now they face the threat of lost business if they don’t help customers do the same. An Australian regulator recently told Peabody Energy and Glencore they couldn’t export coal from a new mine to countries that haven’t signed the Paris climate agreement. Two other Australian coal projects were scuttled this year, partly out of concern about greenhouse-gas emissions overseas.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg is scheduled to return to Capitol Hill this month to testify before a House panel about the company’s foray into cryptocurrency, just weeks after facing a chilly reception from lawmakers about his vision for internet regulation.

The House Financial Services Committee said Wednesday that Mr. Zuckerberg will be the sole witness at an Oct. 23 hearing that examines Facebook’s impact on the financial services and housing sectors.

Facebook in June revealed plans to launch a new cryptocurrency, known as libra, and a digital wallet, called calibra, that could be used to pay for goods online and send money world-wide.

• The Internal Revenue Service’s partnership with private firms, such as H&R Block Inc. and Intuit Inc., the maker of TurboTax, to provide free tax preparation to millions of filers has serious flaws but also appears to provide substantial benefits, according to an outside review commissioned by the IRS.
   
• U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) is calling for a national-security review of the 2017 deal that enabled the Chinese owner of video-sharing app TikTok to expand its reach in the U.S., saying the platform’s moderators are censoring content to appease Beijing.
   
• Senior U.S. and Chinese officials will square off for trade talks Thursday at a pivotal moment in the countries’ relationship, with higher tariffs looming if negotiators fail to break a five-month stalemate. Meanwhile, Federal Reserve officials worried that slowing global growth and rising trade-policy uncertainty could exert a drag on hiring and the U.S. economy when they cut interest rates last month.
   
• Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is suspending sales of e-cigarettes and accessories to buyers in the U.S., citing concerns about underage vaping and a mysterious lung illness that has been linked to at least 23 deaths.
   
• PG&E cut power to about 700,000 households and businesses in northern and central California in a move of unprecedented scale meant to avert the type of deadly infernos that killed dozens last year and propelled the utility into bankruptcy court.

Apple has joined the list of American companies under fire in China over the Hong Kong protests. The iPhone maker triggered an angry response from Chinese state media and consumers when it approved a map app that allows protesters in Hong Kong to track police movements.

Apple is among the most recognizable U.S. brands in China, and it relies heavily on the country for manufacturing and sales. The Cupertino, Calif., giant was lambasted for approving the app and accused of showing support for the protesters.

• Activision Weighs China’s Call Against Duties Back Home
• China Has an Apology Playbook. The NBA Has Another Idea.

• Nissan said it limited the duties of a former Carlos Ghosn aide, Hari Nada, after board directors questioned Mr. Nada’s continued role at the company. Mr. Nada was a senior vice president in charge of legal affairs. While retaining the senior vice president title, he will no longer be in charge of legal affairs and will become a senior adviser working on forthcoming legal action, which a Nissan spokeswoman said included the coming criminal trial of Mr. Ghosn and Nissan. 
   
• Target's chief merchant, Mark Tritton, has resigned ahead of the key holiday season to take the top job at Bed Bath & Beyond, a rival chain that has been struggling to adapt to the shifting retail landscape.

• American Airlines said it expects Boeing's 737 MAX will remain out of service until January, the latest example of how the grounded plane continues to create additional costs and logistical burdens for carriers and passengers.
   
• Employer demand for workers softened this summer, as job openings fell from a year earlier for the third consecutive month in August. Hiring, too, has cooled, as the total number of workers hired on to new jobs was lower in August than a year earlier—further evidence that a slowing economy and worries about trade may be affecting the job market. 

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Send comments to the Risk & Compliance editor, Jack Hagel, at jack.hagel@wsj.com.