MEDIA STATEMENT
Johannesburg, South Africa, Friday 25 October 2024 - Public Interest SA welcomes the progress acknowledged by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) during its October 2024 Plenary meeting in Paris, which commended South Africa on successfully addressing 16 out of 22 critical action items on its greylist Action Plan. We are heartened by the significant strides made toward improving South Africa’s Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) framework.
While hopeful about the country’s direction, we recognise that exiting the greylist within the next 12 months remains challenging. As noted by National Treasury, South Africa now faces six remaining action items to be completed by February 2025 to meet FATF’s standards fully. These efforts encompass increased effectiveness in complex money laundering investigations, stronger frameworks for beneficial ownership transparency, and robust enforcement of AML/CFT supervisory compliance.
The updates shared by National Treasury emphasise that, while progress is robust, sustained action is necessary. Notably, South Africa has demonstrated increased outbound mutual legal assistance (MLA) requests, bolstered AML/CFT supervision for Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs), and strengthened asset seizure and confiscation efforts. As a result, FATF has upgraded nine action items in South Africa’s plan, with eight now considered “largely addressed” and one “partly addressed.” However, to exit the greylist by mid-2025, South Africa must continue demonstrating rigorous enforcement, improved transparency, and comprehensive compliance across all outstanding items.
The remaining action items underscore the importance of focused improvements in key areas. South Africa must prioritise:
Effective sanctions application by AML/CFT supervisors.
Accurate and timely beneficial ownership information, with enforceable sanctions for non-compliance.
An increase in investigations and prosecutions of complex money laundering and terror financing activities aligned with identified risk profiles.
Public Interest SA appreciates the dedication of the interdepartmental committee under National Treasury, which has coordinated progress and overseen critical compliance areas. We urge continued momentum and sustained attention to areas requiring further improvement to ensure a timely, effective exit from the greylist. As a civil society organisation, we stand ready to support national efforts in bolstering accountability, transparency, and integrity in line with FATF’s global standards.
For continued progress, we encourage South African companies and trust entities to ensure that beneficial ownership information is promptly updated with relevant registries, as per legal requirements. National Treasury’s recent calls to action reflect a national commitment to address these obligations by November 2024.
Achieving full compliance with FATF’s global standards requires a unified, all-of-society commitment to action.
In summary, while the FATF’s recent progress update for South Africa is promising, the journey to a full greylist exit requires further strides. Public Interest SA remains optimistic and engaged in advocating for systemic improvements in line with our mandate to foster good governance and ethical practices across all sectors.
Issued by Public Interest SA
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Note to Editors: Public Interest SA is actively exploring initiatives to support South Africa's efforts to exit the FATF grey list. In line with this commitment, we are organising the Off The Books Summit, scheduled for 2025. For further information, please click here.
