On Thursday 7th April 2022, the FSC Regional Centre of Excellence (or the RCE for short) held its 5th event on “Supporting efforts to tackle Corruption and other Financial Crimes during COVID-19” virtually. During this event, there have been 560 participants from 22 different countries, who registered for this workshop.
Among the participants, there were dignities from different sectors namely Mr Mardayah Kona Yerukunondu, Chairperson of the Financial Services Commission and First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Mauritius; Mr Rajeshsharma Ramloll, Senior Counsel, Solicitor General and Vice-Chairperson of the Financial Services Commission; Dr Navin Beekarry, Director-General of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) who was following virtually; Board Members of the FSC; Mr Antonio Gomes, Deputy Director of the OECD Directorate for Financial and Enterprise; Affairs of the OECD; Mr Patrick Moulette, Head of the Anti-Corruption Division (ACD) in the OECD Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs and Mr Oliver Garrett-Jones, Head of Blockchain Policy, OECD.
During his speech, Mr Dhanesswurnath Thakoor, the Chief Executive of the Financial Services Commission, recalled that the RCE kick-started its capacity building programmes back in November 2020 and despite the pandemic, it has pursued its calendar of events. The RCE has, from the start of its mandate, reached out to more than 1,200 participants from 50 different countries. This is testimony of the growing popularity and importance of the workshops organised by the RCE. Going forward, given that travel restrictions have eased, we are planning to host our next event themed ‘Investment Dispute Mechanisms’ in a hybrid format and it will be a pleasure to welcome you physically in Mauritius.
He also shared that the RCE was set up on 15th March 2019 following the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Mauritius and the OECD. The MOU laid down the foundations for the collaboration between the OECD and Mauritius to strengthen and support effective regulations, sound corporate governance and good conduct of business in the region.
Mr Thakoor seized the opportunity on behalf of the Governing Board of the RCE, the Chairperson of the FSC, and in his personal name, to congratulate Dr Carmine de Noia, whom he had the honour to meet personally during his visit at the OECD last month, for his appointment as Director of the Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs of the OECD. Dr Carmine de Noia, who has not been able to be part of this workshop, is considered as to be a firm supporter of the initiatives discussed. The CEO expressed himself stating that “We would wish to welcome you physically in Mauritius for our future events”. Dhanesswurnath Thakoor also acknowledged the work of the exiting Acting Director, Madam Mathilde Mesnard and wished her all the best for her new endeavour at the International Organisation of Pension Supervisors (IOPS).
During his speech, Mr Thakoor commended the OECD and the RCE for the theme of the event which came at this opportune moment where the world is hopefully getting out of the pandemic. Corruption and financial crimes have always been a matter of concern for regulators. Statistics have shown that corruption and financial crimes have significantly picked up during the Covid-19 pandemic, whereby scammers have taken advantage of the vulnerabilities of systems. According to Cybersecurity Ventures, cybercrime damage stood at 6 Trillion US Dollars in 2021. The cost of cybercrime is one of the largest costs incurred together with cost of corruption and narcotics.
The Financial Services Commission is mindful of the consequences of financial crimes and corruption. Anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) controls, when effectively implemented, mitigate the adverse effects of criminal economic activity and promote integrity and stability in financial markets.
As the regulator of the non-bank financial services sector, the Commission takes ongoing measures to combat financial crimes and collaborate with other competent authorities in the fight against corruption. Since the advent of the pandemic in 2020, we have observed that scammers have taken advantages of the uncertain climate and engaged into different kinds of scam activities such as:
- Luring the public to offer seemingly enticing loan packages;
- Exploiting weaknesses in Information Technology networks and systems to gain access to confidential, personal and business-critical information amid a sharp rise in remote-working;
- Fundraising for fake charities and various COVID-19 related phishing schemes;
- Increasing presence in Social Media, through Social Engineering, to better orchestrate phishing attempts.
To this end, the Commission has issued 2 communiqués at the start of the pandemic to warn the public against the potential scams and has issued no less than 44 alerts since 2020, including requests to pull down fake websites and referred matters to competent authorities where necessary.
The Commission has also issued a circular letter on cybersecurity risk governance to its licensees and is working with the industry to come up with a framework for cybersecurity for the industry as a whole.
Financial crimes and money laundering are highly correlated. To this end, the Commission has demonstrated to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) that the systems, which have been implemented to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism, are sustainable. It has enhanced the Risked Based Supervision Framework, has carried out onsite inspections, and where deficiencies were identified, has taken enforcement actions. Mr Dhanesswurnath Thakoor also shared that the Commission has around 20,000 licensees. As part of its yearly supervisory cycle, around 1,900 offsite monitoring questionnaires are sent to the licensees. Around 700 offsite reviews and about 380 onsite inspections with 90 data metrics as per established KPIs to collect and process have been performed. To achieve this goal on a yearly basis, investments in IT to automate have been processed.
Another important component in the fight against corruption and financial crimes is a strong corporate governance system. Without a good corporate governance system in place, the overall impact of anti-corruption initiatives is reduced and the growth of companies and the countries where they operate is undermined. To this end, the Commission has strengthened its corporate governance frameworks, both internally and for its licensees. Whilst the Commission has a Corporate Governance Committee which recommends on the Corporate Governance provisions to be adopted, FSC licensees are also required to comply with principles set out in the National Code of Corporate Governance.
Before concluding, Mr Dhanesswurnath Thakoor stated that having sighted today’s programme, he is eager to listen to the team of experts because the theme is very relevant to the current situation. He thanked the OECD and the RCE for bringing such eminent speakers and strongly believe that the workshop will add to the level of knowledge that regulators need so as to learn from the best practices.
He also highlighted that in preparation of the workshop, the FSC has worked together with the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the Attorney General’s Office (AGO). The Director General of ICAC, Dr Navin Beekarry, could not make it due to his busy schedule but has shared his Keynote Address through a video which was viewed by all participants. He also thanked Mr Rajeshsharma Ramloll, Solicitor General, who has graced us with his presence. The Chief Executive of the Financial Services Commission ended his speech with a note of thanks addressed to all participants.
