Commercial banks operating in DRC are subject to an international correspondent banking. This is the Citi Bank. It is through this US bank that will now have to spend all transfers and / or money transfers internationally. In practice, commented an expert of the sector, this bank will play the role of the new policeman of the Congolese financial system.
If they had the opportunity and the choice to correspond with international banks for their international currency transactions, all these correspondents ended this collaboration. And only the Citi has been allowed to derogate from this measure.
In fact, says the anonymous expert, there is talk for the US Treasury to centralize all banking operations of the DRC internationally and vice versa to better control the Congolese financial system.
« The fact of using only Citi Bank as international correspondent will not change anything in the way of doing of congolese commercial banks . However, they must be more stringent in their transactions to avoid facing some refusals and / or quirks of the bank that now enjoys exclusivity », we say in the Congolese financial sphere.
CCB Insurance
This strategy thus reinforces the control mechanism against the circulation of dirty money and preserves the corresponding international banks against the risk of suffering OFAC sanctions for any negligence on the part of one of the Congolese banks that have, in front of them, a panoply of personalities placed under American sanctions. Hence, the need to ensure their scrupulous implementation.
At the level of the Central Bank of Congo (BCC), the process of regular adaptation of anti-terrorist financing mechanisms to the principles of FATF continues. The governor, Deogracias Mutombo reaffirms the reality of compliance mechanisms that are part of efforts to avoid the stagnation of US correspondents.
In our banks, compliance services are equipped with software dedicated to detecting transactions that do not comply with international financial regulations. These are software that interact with international software including OFAC (Editor’s note: the US Treasury) and return all information blacklisted people, sanctioned people and ensure that transactions found to be non-compliant with international regulations do not pass.
There is also the improvement of the knowledge systems of the customer that allow to report unusual operations, « he told the press at the end of the meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee.
The number one BCC also reassured that a charter of compliance with international financial regulations has been developed and has been accepted by all banks.
All in all, the US Treasury is committed to fighting corruption, money laundering, financing of terrorism around the world using its currency (the US dollar) including the DRC. What is more normal that he takes a close look at the nature of all financial transactions that are made at the beginning or the arrival of the country of Felix Tshisekedi, recently led by Joseph Kabila.
Emilie MBOYO