The Financial Intelligence Centre’s recent trust service provider risk assessment classified the overall inherent Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing risk for trust service providers as medium, but highlighted several serious concerns. These include low regulatory reporting volumes, limited compliance awareness, challenges in identifying ultimate beneficial owners, foreign trust complexity, highnetworth client exposure, complex structures and geographic risk.
As at 10 July 2026, the FIC has advised that:
- Only 417 of 789 Trust Service Providers have submitted their Risk and Compliance Returns, and
- Only 493 of 789 have uploaded their Risk Management Compliance Programs on the FIC’s goAML platform.
All FISA members who are Trust Service Providers are strongly encouraged to complete the FIC survey.
Your participation is essential to provide accurate sector feedback and to help prevent an increased risk rating for the trust service provider sector, which in turn supports South Africa’s efforts to be permanently removed from the Grey List.
Access the survey here.
Deadline: Friday 17 July 2026 at 08:00.