By Bradley Elliott, CEO at RelyComply South Africa completed its Financial Action Task Force (FATF) action plan and left the grey list in October 2025. The more telling test now is whether the systems built under pressure remain effective when there is no deadline forcing the issue. For businesses, that makes compliance less a regulatory exercise than part of the infrastructure required to grow with confidence. Background: What is the FATF? The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an international group created in 1989 by the G7. It sets global rules to stop money laundering, terrorist financing, and the funding of mass destruction weapons. Over 200 countries use its guidelines to protect the world money system.1 Getting off the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list was an important achievement for South Africa. It proved that a country faced with serious weaknesses in its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing framework could mobilise regulators, law enforcement agencies and the private sector around a common set of reforms. However, drawing up an action plan and proving that a system works in the long term aren’t mutually assured. The FATF’s assessment process does not end when a jurisdiction leaves increased monitoring. South Africa’s next mutual evaluation is already imminent, with a possible on-site assessment in February 2027 and plenary discussion later that year. Even though policies and affiliated institutions exist, FATF also assesses whether the mandated measures are in place and producing the outcomes they were designed to achieve. Those measures include everything from customer due diligence, transaction monitoring and suspicious-transaction reporting to supervision, investigation, prosecution, asset recovery and cooperation between the institutions responsible for fighting financial crime. For financial institutions and other accountable businesses, compliance has changed. Beyond whether an organisation can …
RelyComply integrates LSEG World-Check On Demand to deliver real-time financial crime risk management
Johannesburg, South Africa: RelyComply has announced a partnership with LSEG Risk Intelligence to integrate World-Check On Demand into its financial crime compliance platform, helping global financial institutions strengthen screening, due diligence and ongoing monitoring workflows. World-Check On Demand delivers structured, machine-readable risk intelligence through an API-first architecture, enabling organisations to access sanctions, politically exposed persons, adverse media and enforcement information in real time as part of customer onboarding, screening and ongoing monitoring processes. As regulatory expectations continue to rise, many compliance teams face a growing challenge: managing the increasing volume of alerts, investigations, and reporting requirements without significantly expanding resources. False positives remain one of the biggest operational burdens in AML programmes, consuming valuable time and resources that could be directed towards genuine financial crime risks. At the same time, financial institutions are under pressure to streamline customer onboarding and due diligence processes while maintaining strong controls against financial crime, sanctions breaches and fraud. Through the partnership, RelyComply integrates LSEG World-Check On Demand into a single AI-driven platform that supports customer screening, identity verification, enhanced due diligence and ongoing monitoring. The integration is designed to support more efficient screening and investigation workflows by bringing together relevant risk intelligence within existing compliance processes, while leaving institutions responsible for their own risk assessment and decision-making. "For years, organisations focused on gaining access to more data. Today, the challenge is turning that data into measurable outcomes. Regulators increasingly want evidence that compliance programmes and technology solutions are effective, not simply that they exist," says Brad Elliott, CEO of …
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The Invisible Disease Hiding in Plain Sight
By Merilynn Steenkamp, General Manager, Southern Africa, Multi-Country Network, at Roche Diagnostics, South Africa Some diseases announce themselves early. Others creep up subtly. Hepatitis B and C can damage the liver before symptoms appear, leaving people unaware they are living with the disease until serious complications develop, meaning hepatitis is often invisible; that is, unless you voluntarily test for the virus.¹ The short version: the basic ABCs of hepatitis: There are five recognised types of viral hepatitis: hepatitis A, B, C, D and E. Each differs in how it is transmitted and managed; hepatitis B and C are responsible for the greatest burden of chronic liver disease worldwide. Hepatitis D only occurs alongside hepatitis B, and hepatitis A and E are generally short-term infections. However, hepatitis E can pose severe risks during pregnancy.2 Hepatitis B is a viral infection that affects the liver and, though it can be prevented through vaccination, it remains a major global health challenge. Some people recover completely, but others develop a long-term or chronic infection that can lead to serious complications like liver cirrhosis and liver cancer.3 “Okay, but why should I go for a test?” Here’s where it’s worth pausing to consider that viral hepatitis affects over 300 million people globally. Around 2.7 million of those are in South Africa. But most people are not diagnosed or getting the treatment they need. Every day, 3,500 people die from liver disease caused by viral hepatitis worldwide. The burden is greatest in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in Africa, where an estimated 65 million people are living with chronic hepatitis B.4 The good news is that hepatitis B can be prevented through vaccination, and a healthcare provider near you will order a blood test panel that checks for specific viral proteins (antigens) and immune system proteins (antibodies). This simple blood draw usually takes less than five …
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How One Bag of Glass Can Change Your Day
Johannesburg, South Africa – Did you know that the empty glass bottles and jars people throw away every day could help put money in your pocket? Across South Africa, glass recycling is creating practical earning opportunities for collectors and supporting a growing network of buy-back centres (BBCs) that form an important part of the recycling value chain. As the official Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO) for glass packaging in South Africa, The Glass Recycling Company continues to drive awareness around the value of recyclable glass, not only for the environment, but also for the people and businesses helping keep glass in circulation. With little more than a bag to get started, collectors can gather glass bottles and jars and sell them to buy-back centres for cash. For many individuals and families, this provides an accessible income opportunity while helping create cleaner communities. Buy-back centres also play a vital role in the recycling ecosystem by creating collection points where recyclable materials can be exchanged for money before being returned to the recycling process. As demand for recycled glass continues, there is a greater need for more buy-back centres within the recycling system to help meet collection demands and create economic opportunities within local communities. Through its support initiatives, The Glass Recycling Company assists buy-back centres with resources such as transport subsidies and infrastructure support to help strengthen and grow the collection network. “Glass has value long after it has been used,” says Shabeer Jhetam, CEO of The Glass Recycling Company. “What some people see as waste can become an earning opportunity for someone else. Every bottle collected contributes to a system that supports jobs, cleaner communities, and a more sustainable future.” Glass remains one of the few packaging materials that can be recycled endlessly without losing quality, making every bottle and jar collected an …
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New Pilot Backs Youth-Owned Micro-Farming Start-Ups to Tackle Jobs Crisis and Food Insecurity
Pretoria: South Africa is grappling with two interconnected challenges - persistently high youth unemployment and declining local food production. A new pilot is testing whether both can be tackled at once with a bold new idea – skipping the job hunt and building businesses instead. A farming initiative led by non-profit organisation Afrika Tikkun, and funded and supported by impact investor, E Squared Investments, is positioning small-scale agritech as a viable and dignified start-up pathway for young people to earn an income and build sustainable livelihoods while contributing to local food security and economic growth. Launched on 5 May, the Green Acres Hydro-Coop programme is equipping 20 young participants to run revenue-generating micro-farming ventures using compact, solar-powered systems that produce both chickens and vegetables, with the longer-term goal of building a scalable model that can support new cohorts of youth over time. The pilot comes as South Africa continues to face severe labour market pressure, particularly among young people and women, who remain disproportionately excluded from formal work opportunities. From Training to Enterprise The programme began in February, with the participants entering a practical development phase that combines training with live business operations. Since then, they have been involved in programmes covering hydroponics, farm management and entrepreneurship, while simultaneously launching their own micro-enterprises to supply various retail outlets. The Hydro-Coop unit is a smart farming system that combines poultry production with hydroponic vegetable growing. The units run on solar power, require no permanent infrastructure and use substantially less water than conventional farming methods. The crops are grown using sustainable, biodiversity farming methods, giving township youth access to modern, high-value agricultural skills. Beyond Farming: Building Market-Ready Businesses Afrika …
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Secha Capital and E Squared Partner to Scale “Execution Capital” for South Africa’s Real Economy
New investment from E Squared accelerates Secha’s US$40M Fund II, scaling a unique Operator-Investor model that bridges the gap between capital and talent. JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA - Secha Capital, the pioneer of "Execution Capital" in Southern Africa, has reached a second close of its US$40 million growth fund, Secha Capital Impact (Fund II). Joining the fund is E Squared Investments, a renowned impact investor founded by Allan Gray, alongside existing backers including RMB Ventures, the SA SME Fund, and 27four Investment Managers. Bridging the Talent Gap: The OI and CEOI Model At the heart of this partnership is a shared mission to solve the two biggest hurdles for small, growing businesses: access to capital and access to world-class talent. Secha’s Operator-Investor (OI) model embeds young, high-powered professionals directly into portfolio companies to work side-by-side with founders on sales, operations, and strategy. The model has now evolved to include the Chief Executive Operator-Investor (CEOI) track. This provides a clear, high-impact career path for elite professionals to transition from corporate roles into C-suite leadership within the portfolio. This replicable "talent-first" approach de-risks the investment for institutional investors while providing entrepreneurs with the "human capital" required to scale. Rushil Vallabh, co-founder of Secha Capital. said, "“Most investors provide capital and advice. We provide execution. By embedding the right operators next to founders, we turn strategy into results and potential into performance.” Real Economy, Real Impact Secha Fund II targets essential, high-growth sectors that form the backbone of the economy—including agriculture, manufacturing, energy, and consumer goods. The fund is already 40% invested across eight companies, including: Barracuda (electronics manufacturing); Plentify (energy technology)’; Cultura Fresh (controlled-environment farming); FarmTrace (farm management …
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Why Consumer Fraud Warnings Are Failing in the Age of AI
By Thalia Pillay, co-founder and CEO of Orca Fraud The fines scam. The SARS refund. The parcel that needs clearing. If you have a South African cellphone number, you have met all three. Fraud has become part of the noise of our digital lives — commonplace enough that most people have developed a reflex for it. Delete. Ignore. Move on. But here is the harder question, and it is one that should concern anyone working inside a bank, a fintech, or a payment platform: can consumers still detect fraud based on the signals they have been taught to look for? Because those signals — awkward language, suspicious links, requests that feel slightly off — are no longer sufficient markers. AI has made fraud increasingly indistinguishable from legitimate contact, and the gap between a real communication and a manufactured one is closing fast. This Easter, Standard Bank, Absa, Nedbank, and GoTyme all issued fraud warnings. The advice is correct. The fact that it keeps needing to be issued, at increasing frequency, is worth paying attention to. According to SABRIC's 2024 Annual Crime Statistics, digital banking fraud incidents rose 86% last year — nearly 98,000 cases, with losses approaching R1.9 billion. The primary driver is social engineering: criminals manipulating customers into surrendering credentials rather than breaching banking systems directly. Why social engineering is getting harder to stop Fraudsters now use AI-generated phishing emails that are grammatically flawless, contextually accurate, and calibrated to the tone of the institution they are impersonating. Voice cloning can replicate a bank official convincingly enough to pass a real-time call. Deepfake video is beginning to appear in higher-value scenarios. AI-assisted tools allow syndicates to run more attacks simultaneously, at a fraction of the cost of traditional operations. Consumer education programmes have always assumed that a sufficiently alert customer is a meaningful line of …
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The legal duty of care in commuter transport
Commuter transport is not simply a commercial activity. It carries a clear legal duty of care. Operators of taxis, mid-sized fleets and large bus companies are responsible not only for delivering passengers from one point to another, but for ensuring that vehicles are roadworthy, drivers are appropriately licensed and routes are managed within regulatory frameworks. These obligations are grounded in road traffic legislation, licensing requirements and common law principles of negligence. Where these duties are neglected, the consequences extend beyond regulatory penalties. Civil liability, third-party claims and reputational damage can place operators under significant financial strain. CTU operates at the intersection of transport operations and legal accountability. As a specialist underwriting manager focused exclusively on commuter transport, we evaluate risk through underwriting assessments, claims investigations and compliance reviews. This provides a detailed understanding of how legal obligations translate into operational practice. From our experience, the strongest operators treat compliance as a core management function rather than an administrative burden. Maintenance schedules are documented. Driver credentials are verified. Incident reporting is structured and timeous. Insurance policies are appropriately structured to reflect actual operational exposure. Conversely, informal record-keeping, expired licences, overloaded vehicles or inconsistent maintenance histories increase both accident risk and legal vulnerability. When an incident occurs, documentation gaps can complicate claims processes and expose operators to uninsured losses. Insurance plays a stabilising role within this legal framework. Properly structured cover ensures that injured third parties, passengers and affected road users have access to financial recourse. It also protects operators from catastrophic financial collapse following major claims. CTU’s …
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Roche Africa Launches Integration Accelerated to Expand Access to TB Diagnostics and Strengthen Integrated Care Continent-Wide
Roche Diagnostics is launching an initiative to support countries in strengthening sustainable, integrated health systems to test for multiple high-burden diseases at once Many African countries have made strong progress in combating TB, but further acceleration is needed to meet global targets Integration of diagnostic testing offers a practical way to expand access and improve efficiency using existing infrastructure Johannesburg, South Africa: Roche Diagnostics Africa launches Integration Accelerated, a new approach designed to support countries in expanding access to diagnostics while making better use of existing infrastructure. TB remains the world’s deadliest infectious disease, with an estimated 10.7 million cases and 1.23 million deaths globally in 20241. Africa has made significant progress, achieving some of the fastest declines worldwide, with new cases reduced by 28% and deaths by 46% since 20152. At the same time, the region continues to carry a substantial share of the global burden, accounting for around a quarter of new cases and over 30% of deaths3. A meaningful proportion of cases are still not diagnosed or reported, and the close link between TB and HIV continues to shape the complexity of care in many countries3. With resources becoming more constrained, accelerating progress will depend on how effectively existing technologies and infrastructure are used to expand access and strengthen care delivery. Integration Accelerated focuses on enabling the use of established HIV diagnostic platforms to support additional testing for TB, Human Papillomavirus (HPV), and Hepatitis. This allows countries to extend the reach of their current systems, taking a “whole patient” approach, and strengthening overall laboratory efficiency without requiring additional capital investment. The initiative is aligned with growing national priorities across Africa, where health systems are increasingly focused on scalable, cost-effective solutions …
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Global Money Week: Five Smart Money Moves Every Gig Worker in South Africa Should Make
As Global Money Week (16–22 March) shines a spotlight on financial literacy worldwide, millions of South Africans working in the gig economy face a very real challenge: income may be flexible, but financial planning still needs structure. From freelance designers and tutors to plumbers, drivers and digital assistants, gig work has become a lifeline for many households. But irregular income means managing money requires a different approach to traditional salaries. According to Statistics South Africa, the country’s unemployment rate remains around 32%, pushing many people to build income through multiple small jobs, side hustles or freelance services. Platforms like Uptooyoo are helping connect skilled South Africans with customers, but earning the income is only half the story. Managing your diary to fit in bookings, ensuring timely customer payments, and keeping it stable require a few practical habits. Here are a few money moves gig workers should consider this Global Money Week. 1. Treat your side hustle like a real business Many gig workers still see their services as “extra money”, but treating it like a business changes everything. Track income, record expenses, research rates and price your services properly. If your skill solves a real problem, it deserves to be paid at professional rates. 2. Separate business and personal money One of the simplest financial habits is also one of the most powerful. Even if it’s just a second bank account, separating business income helps gig workers see whether they are actually making money. 3. Plan income and client sourcing realistically - not based on goodwill Many people launch a service and initially get support from friends, family, church or their local community. While that early support is helpful, it is rarely sustainable as a long-term income base. Realistically planning your income means building a much wider pool of paying clients beyond those who hire you out of goodwill or …