Financial Crime

In the murky world of financial crime, human trafficking, people smuggling and modern slavery surely stand out as the most callous and despicable acts perpetrated by organised crime syndicates. From the mass drownings that occur across the Mediterranean and English channel on an almost daily basis to the many child trafficking rings exposed across the world, the depravity of human trafficking never ceases to shock and amaze us.

This article looks at the sobering state of human trafficking in Africa while outlining the case for how financial crime and anti-money laundering experts act as a crucial intermediary in stopping human trafficking ‘in its tracks’.

A Financial Crime worsened by the COVID-19 Pandemic

Human trafficking remains a terrifying issue that does not escape colour, class or creed, and has unfortunately been further exacerbated by the COVID pandemic, as Governments and expert agencies focus on the economic and vaccination response. As the criminal syndicates who fuel this illicit trade increasingly adopt the dark web to conduct their activities, financial crime and compliance officers now play a critical role, alongside law enforcement, in identifying suspicious transactions and flagging individuals who may be complicit in human trafficking. 

The Extent of Human Trafficking in Africa

On the same day that the Ghislaine Maxwell sex-trafficking trial in connection with Jeffrey Epstein, is set to begin in New York, African statistics paint a grim picture of its proliferation across the continent. According to the Traffik Analysis Hub in the UK, and the African Institute for Security Studies, it is estimated that each and every year, an additional 3.5 million African citizens are being trafficked, while close to nine million Africans are currently being enslaved. Almost every African state is identified as either a source, transit, or destination country for victims, making this a significant issue for all nations to address.

The Role of the Public and Private Sector in Fighting Back

The global crime syndicates involved in human trafficking, operate through a veiled cloak of online secrecy that is almost impossible to intercept. However, the one area of opportunity to disrupt and dismantle these syndicates is through the monitoring of the financial transactions of suspected individuals. Compliance and financial crime professionals can assist in identifying, flagging and reporting suspicious activities through the following methods;

• Identify red flags and report suspect financial activities before they are processed and cleared. 
• Financial companies to empower regulatory and compliance teams with the relevant resources to take reporting action on each individual suspicious activity
• Enhanced Sanctions screenings process while onboarding new customers. 
• Leverage the latest technologies and localised platforms to help identify risks and raise red flags

RAHN Financial Crime – Turning the Tide against Human Trafficking

The transaction monitoring capabilities of the Rahn Financial Crime Platform enables organisations to identify specific types of transactions which can be associated with Human Trafficking. This is done by monitoring transactions to identify suspicious activity known to resemble transactions that are concluded by traffickers. An example of such would be transactions where large deposits are immediately withdrawn, close to international borders. In this case, the location of the branch where the transaction was executed, the size of the withdrawal (including aggregation) and the timing of the transaction will all be considered to identify potentially suspicious activity.

RAHN Consolidated Pty Ltd. is a proudly South African company, committed to equipping financial professionals with real-time resources to take the fight against human trafficking rings and other organised crime syndicates. Contact us today to explore how we can empower your business with a financial attack strategy to help put an end to human trafficking.