Turning tables on corruption
SA is running out of time to prevent being greylisted by the global Financial Action Task Force(FATF) after its February 2023 plenary meeting.
However, whatever the decision is, major new requirements to tighten up on corruption are coming and companies, state-owned entities, nonprofit organisations and individuals need to be prepared for a sea change of tougher new standards from 2023.
This all comes after the FATF visited SA in 2019 and found that SA had solid legal frameworks and policies but significantly lacked effective systems to tackle financial crime and money laundering.
In November, the cabinet moved quickly to approve the national strategy on antimoney laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation of financing, together with the National Risk Assessment.
The strategy was developed as a response to the risk assessment prepared by all the relevant security and finance agencies.
The impact will be broader than many realise as the operationalisation of this strategy — which provides three high-level goals with 13 strategic objectives — will involve law enforcement agencies, intelligence agencies, financial and nonfinancial institutions and private sector representatives, among others.