Illegal Wildlife Trade - Reporting

Due to the global nature of IWT, financial institutions have an important role to play in reporting suspicious links to IWT. However, according to a recent report by Egmont Centre of FIU Excellence and Leadership (ECOFEL) global Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) have reported low levels of financial investigations into wildlife crime, possibly due to “a lack of financial scrutiny.”

This section is designed to encourage and help institutions raise both higher volumes and better quality Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs).

Although different countries have specific suspicious transaction reporting templates, there is clear guidance from international bodies over what to include. A common theme across bodies including FATF, the UNODC and the Wolfsberg Group of banks is that the quality of suspicious transaction reports is paramount to enable law enforcement to gain a fuller picture and should include:

The reason for suspicion that an individual or entity is directly or indirectly involved in IWT;

An understanding of who is doing what;

Who they are/were doing it with;

When they are/were doing it;

Why they are/were doing it;

Where they did it;

How they are doing it.

Listen to Agnes Magero, Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) at SAFARICOM talk about supporting IWT law enforcement efforts in Kenya.