Displaying items by tag: Transparency International

New in-depth analysis found unacceptable levels of money laundering risks in French real estate, despite transparency measures. Non-compliance, incomplete data, and loopholes are creating a brick wall for attempts to follow flows of dirty money into real estate. Six years after France began collecting information on the beneficial owners of companies, almost a third of legal entities have failed to comply. Consequently over 7.33 million parcels of land, which could contain one or multiple properties, are anonymously held. There is a dead end for efforts to follow the money of white-collar criminals, kleptocrats and sanctioned elites into French real estate, which is known to be a favoured destination for corrupt cash. Over 1.5 million registered entities have not yet declared who ultimately owns and benefits from them.

This week, policymakers in Canada received a wake-up call to address the country's money laundering problem, known as ‘snow washing’. Following reports of money laundering through gambling, real estate and luxury car sectors, the government of the province of British Columbia convened an independent commission to look into the problem. They called on numerous witnesses, experts and Transparency International. They found serious failings from the provincial through to the federal level. Real estate professionals rarely recognise money laundering. Pray for better guidance from the federal financial intelligence unit. Secrecy in real estate ownership aggravates the problem. One-third of the 100 most valuable residential properties are owned through anonymous shell companies. Pray for more indexes that record the true owners of companies, trusts or partnerships owning real estate. The need for Canada to accelerate this fight is even clearer in light of the difficulties the country now faces in implementing its own sanctions against Russian kleptocrats following the invasion of Ukraine.

Ground-breaking legislation introduced to Parliament recently could provide a major boost to Britain’s defences against illicit wealth. Transparency International (TI) said that the bill introduces much-needed reforms on property ownership, transparency, strengthening UK asset recovery powers, and sanctions. But there are some gaps within it. An 18-month transition period is far too long, and risks massive levels of asset flight. TI recommends the Government implement transitional provisions to stop property from being sold before the register comes into force and the proceeds transferred overseas. Overseas companies owning UK property should declare their beneficial ownership information; and the legislation should be implemented at the earliest opportunity to empower Companies House to introduce verification checks, query, investigate and remove false information.

Deterioration of democratic policies in the Palestinian leadership has caused a coalition of nongovernmental organisations to call it ‘political corruption.’ For years this coalition, named AMAN, focused on administrative and financial corruption. Now the eroding integrity of the Palestinian leadership has forced Transparency International to tackle a corrupt political system that among other things cancelled a long-overdue national election and ordered its security forces to harm a Hebron critic, that led to his death. They have also violently cracked down on demonstrations calling for accountability. An AMAN manifesto recently called Palestinians to reject the anti-democratic slippery slope and ‘fight this political corruption by creating a coalition that can contribute toward a more honest governance structure.’ If the current political corruption is not checked, Palestine will move into a dangerous zone.

On 10 June a bipartisan group of members of the US Congress launched a caucus against foreign corruption and kleptocracy at a virtual kickoff event. The new caucus will focus on fighting global corruption and kleptocracy (authoritarian governance model in which foreign officials use corruption to maintain their power and grow their influence in countries). Transparency International said this caucus is a clear recognition of the importance of combating global corruption by leaders, which has increased since the pandemic. Corruption, including stolen and misappropriated relief funding, harsh crackdowns on pandemic reporting in the media, and attempts to appropriate or dismantle democratic and rule-of-law institutions, robs all those in need of urgent aid.

Six months ago Covid-19 was declared a pandemic and has turned the world upside down. Besides the devastating human toll there is the disturbing reality of rising authoritarianism and misuse of relief funds. The growing corruption related to Covid-19 spending calls for global, multilateral solutions. The G20 is one of the few international forums that has the potential to shape and implement policy to fight this crisis. While they promised US$21 billion to fight Covid in June, they have stayed silent on how they will ensure that the funds reach those who need them the most. Last week was the first time the G20 anti-corruption group met in seven months. Also the pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities in public contracting systems around the world and shown how unprepared governments are to buy safely during emergencies. South Africa is one of the worst offenders: see

George Floyd’s death sparked protests against racial inequality and police abuse around the world. Black Americans are three times more likely to be killed by police than white Americans. Transparency International reports that police abuse takes many shapes and forms, and is not unique to the US. In the first two weeks of lockdown in Nigeria extrajudicial killings enforcing the regulations claimed more lives than the virus itself. Across Africa, people think the police are the most corrupt group in their country, 47% of Africans believe that most or all police are corrupt, with 28% having paid a bribe to a police officer in the previous year. Pray for improved tools for citizens to report abuses by law enforcement officers. The police also earned the highest bribery rates in Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and North Africa. Innocent people should never have to fear for their life or their livelihood when they encounter a police officer. See

Around the world in 2019, corruption sparked demonstrations and toppled governments in what should be a wake-up call for leaders to follow through on their commitments and make good on old promises as well as new, meaningful resolutions. Corruption is deepening the crisis of democracy in many parts of the world. Countries with higher rates of public sector corruption have weaker democratic institutions, depriving citizens of political rights such as free and fair elections and the right to protest. Many protested and, losing patience, took to the streets demanding that their governments serve public interest. We may see more protests in the coming year unless political leaders take urgent steps to eradicate corruption and make their countries a liveable place for all citizens. In over 100 countries, people can turn to Transparency International chapters for advice on long-lasting and inclusive approaches to strengthen their democracies.

A new report from the IMF at its spring meeting shows that curbing corruption would deliver an additional US$1 trillion in tax revenues annually across the world; money that could support much-needed investments in health, education and infrastructure. In this season of trade-war fears, threats of economic shocks and warnings of a global economic slowdown, the IMF signalled a clear ambition to take a lead on tackling corruption. Reports for over sixty member countries mention that money-laundering and bribery have more than doubled. Mentions of the term ‘corruption’ increased by over 220%. Transparency International’s report on the IMF stated, ‘It is not enough just to mention corruption. What we would like to see is the IMF also making specific, actionable, and time-bound recommendations to tackle corruption.’

Claims from a Cambridge Analytica (CA) whistle-blower that the Leave campaign won by ‘cheating’ has some people calling for a second vote and others hoping the result can be overturned by Parliament. Our electoral system is under scrutiny, as new evidence shows that both remainers and leavers appear to have done what they could financially to maximise their vote. Researchers now believe it is probable that both sides were up to similar tricks. The controversy over the Brexit vote has drawn British involvement with CA to the attention of Transparency International. If Brexit campaigns end up on the wrong side of the law, pray that they will face the subsequent consequences. But, however we reached Brexit, the referendum result has three likely guarantors: the Conservative backbench, the Labour frontbench, and public opinion. See also article 4 in the World section, about CA.