This call for action was signed by another 140 elected officials from across Europe, and led to an exploratory project funded by the initiators, which in turn resulted in the founding General Assembly on 30 June 2011.

Ieke van den Burg, a former MEP, was appointed chair of the board of directors and Thierry Philipponnat, a former banker and Amnesty International executive in France, became the Secretary General.

Finance Watch is an international association under Belgian law[4] (AISBL), and has two types of members: individuals and civil society organizations.

Members of the Finance Watch board of directors (as of May 2024):[5] The organization's budget has as its main sources project funding from the European Union and grants from several charitable foundations: Adessium Foundation, Fondation pour le progrès de l'homme, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Better Markets, Open Society Initiative for Europe, as well as individual donations and members' fees and contributions.

The organization states it follows six principles[7] in the pursuit of this mission: Finance Watch has national partners in Germany (Bürgerbewegung Finanzwende, headed by Gerhard Schick)[8] and France.