Financial Crime World

Congolese Financial Sector Faces Scrutiny Over Compliance with Regulations

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s financial sector has come under the spotlight once again, this time for its compliance with global financial regulations. A recent report highlights both progress and areas of concern.

Assessment Highlights

Compliance Successes

  • Congo is largely compliant in assessing risk and applying a risk-based approach (R.1)
  • Strong national cooperation and coordination (R.2)
  • Effective implementation of targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing (R.6) and proliferation (R.7)

Areas for Improvement

  • Non-profit organisations (R.8)
  • Customer due diligence (R.10)
  • Record keeping (R.11)
  • Internal controls and foreign branches and subsidiaries (R.18)
  • Measures related to money or value transfer services (R.14) and DNFBPs: Customer due diligence (R.22)

Room for Improvement

Transparency and Beneficial Ownership

  • Congo needs to improve transparency and beneficial ownership of legal persons and arrangements (R.24-25)

Regulation and Supervision

  • Strengthen regulation and supervision of financial institutions (R.26)
  • Improve regulation and supervision of DNFBPs (R.28)

Reporting Suspicious Transactions

  • Congo must improve reporting suspicious transactions (R.20) and cash couriers (R.32)

Positive Developments

Improvements in Compliance Efforts

  • Financial institution secrecy laws have improved (R.9)
  • Customer due diligence has been strengthened (R.10)
  • Record keeping practices have been enhanced (R.11)

International Cooperation

  • Congo has demonstrated strong cooperation with international partners, including mutual legal assistance (R.37) and extradition (R.39)

Call to Action

The report concludes that while Congo has made progress in implementing FATF recommendations, there is still much work to be done to achieve full compliance. To address these challenges, the government must prioritize transparency and accountability in its financial sector, as well as strengthen cooperation with international partners.

In response to these findings, Congolese authorities have vowed to intensify their efforts to improve compliance and reduce the risks associated with money laundering and terrorist financing. The country’s commitment to implementing FATF recommendations is crucial not only for its own stability but also for maintaining global financial security.