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Bring enablers of property corruption to book, says Open Secrets in new report

Image: Wikimedia Commons Lawyers, real estate agents, bankers. These are some of the private sector players that have enabled Africa’s political elite to freely engage in alleged gross money laundering and illicit property dealings in the luxury property market in some of South Africa’s most sought-after locations. Their complicity, say civil society organisations, means that Read more >

The FIC is reaping the rewards of enhanced laws

Is South Africa winning the anti-money laundering war? The Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) would like us to trust that this is the case. In its latest annual report, released at the end of September, the state-owned body declared that it had recovered more than R5.8-billion in criminal proceeds in the last financial year alone, partly Read more >

Tax havens will siphon trillions unless action taken

We know about the millions and billions lost to theft, corruption, maladministration, and other widely publicised causes – but what about the more insidious loss of similar amounts to the undeclared movement of taxable funds across borders? On 25 July the Tax Justice Network (TJN) published its annual State of Tax Justice report, and at Read more >

CW and AmaB submit on anti-money laundering bill, express concerns

In a comprehensive joint submission to Parliament’s Standing Committee on Finance today, non-profit organisations Corruption Watch and AmaBhungane expressed concern that the haste with which the General Laws (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Terrorism Financing) Amendment Bill was developed may have compromised its effectiveness. The bill was prepared in a matter of months after the Financial Read more >

BOT conference: accessible, reliable information will boost prosecutions

Corruption Watch, together with the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA), the Financial Intelligence Centre, the Open Government Partnership, and Open Ownership, co-hosted a conference on taking steps towards achieving beneficial ownership transparency. Titled Collective action for beneficial ownership transparency (BOT) in South Africa: From commitment to implementation, the two-day event, on 16 and Read more >

No Digital Vibes feedback for Scopa yet, funding crisis looming for NPA

Presidency was a no-show for a hearing of the parliamentary standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) on Tuesday, that was meant to receive feedback on the progress of high-profile corruption reports overseen by the country’s law enforcement agencies. This despite having been furnished with Special Investigating Unit (SIU) reports – among them the recently completed Read more >