The September General Meeting of the Association of Chief Compliance Officers of Banks in Nigeria (ACCOBIN) held recently in Lagos. The event which brings together compliance professionals and representatives from regulatory and law enforcement agencies like the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) etc. provides a platform for topical discussions geared towards the improvement of financial compliance standards in the country.
During the event, René Lamberts, Executive Channel Manager MEA at Accuity, posited that a recent Thomas Reuters Survey showed that Africa has some of the highest rates of financial crime and a higher percentage of companies affected by fraud, theft, money laundering or other financial crimes than the global average.
He pointed out that International standard-setters are critical for promoting a level-playing field in financial crime compliance. Financial Action Task Force (FATF), Wolfsberg and the Basel Committee are prominent organizations promoting best compliance practices, raising awareness on Anti-money laundering risks and putting pressure for the implementation of efficient AML framework (Mutual Evaluations)
“The financial services industry in Nigeria needs to collaborate to win this war against financial crime. These criminals are inventive in finding new ways to exploit regulatory loopholes. We, therefore, have to keep on innovating through technology and regulatory compliance to secure loose ends.” Lamberts said
He further stated that Trade finance is the new frontier for financial crime prevention due to its complicated, high volume processes with a variety of actors and sanction measures involved. Using the Firco Trade Compliance solution, Accuity and its partner Union Systems supports the compliance teams to identify the red flags in this complex environment. Accuity provides the technology and data to achieve that best-of-breed compliance.
In conclusion, he said, “financial crime prevention is here to stay, requirements are getting more complicated, proven technology is a key to success”
About Union Systems
Union Systems Limited (USL) is an Information Technology Company that provides financial software solutions and professional services to major banks in Africa. The Company supports customers in 19 African countries and provides software solutions to financial institutions to enhance their software capabilities, effectively scale processes, improve compliance and drive operational efficiencies.
With headquarters in Lagos, Nigeria, the company has a deep understanding of the African market and has a team of highly qualified consultants that have real-world experience in the delivery of complex software solutions. Top banks in Africa rely on Union Systems to deliver growth, profitability and regulatory compliance in financial software applications.
About Accuity
Accuity offers a suite of innovative solutions for payments and compliance professionals, from comprehensive data and software that manage risk and compliance, to flexible tools that optimise payments pathways. With deep expertise and industry-leading data-enabled solutions from the Fircosoft, Bankers Almanac and NRS brands, our portfolio delivers protection for individual and organisational reputations.
Part of RELX Group, a global provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers across industries, Accuity has been delivering solutions to banks and businesses worldwide for 180 years.
