Fair Finance
Watch is a Non-Governmental Organization Focused on the Fairness of the Financial Services
Industries - Banking, Insurance and Securities - to Local Communities, Urban and Rural,
North and (Global) South, including under Human
Rights Laws
FFW researches, documents and advocates around financial firms' activities, and how
they affect local communities. The profiles below are in-process -- For or with more
information, contact us.
Africa
South Africa
Click here for
ICP/FFW's Equatorial Guinea
analysis
West African Monetary Union
-- Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo -- regarding which, a special report below
Nigeria
From Vanguard (Nigeria), January 26, 2004: "The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) last
Monday finally made good its promise to publish the report of banks' performance under the
Small and Medium Industries Equity Investment Scheme (SMIEIS). The report which was
advertised in some national dailies was in fulfilment of a decision to that effect by the
Bankers Committee at its last meeting, last year. The purpose of advertising the report
was to further prove the sincerity of the banking industry in setting aside 10 per cent of
their pre-tax profit for equity investment in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)... 34
banks are yet to invest a single kobo of their fund is quite unacceptable. Surprisingly
some banks regarded as prominent industry players are in this category. These include
Access Bank, Afribank International (Merchant Bankers) Citibank, Equitorial Trust Bank,
Equity Bank, First Atlantic Bank, Global Bank, Hallmark Bank, Lion Bank, Trans
International Bank and UBN Merchant Bank. Infact the case of some of these banks is
thoroughly embarrassing. Imagine Equitorial Trust Bank, Equity Bank, Citibank, Lion Bank,
Access Bank, Hallmark bank and Trans International Bank, given their number of years and
experience as well as their customer base, claiming they are yet to find a worthy SMI
project to finance. The worst culprit among these lot is Citibank, which is yet to invest
anything out of the N343 million it first set aside."
Nigeria has seen in recent years the acquisition of Continental Trust Bank by Standard
Trust Bank, the acquisitions of Citi Trust Merchant Bank (now UBN Merchant Bank) by Union
Bank; the acquisition of Magnum Trust bank by GTB; and the acquisition of ACB by the
troika of Citizens, Diamond and Hallmark.
Regulatory contact:
Central Bank of Nigeria
Zaria Street, Garki,
Abuja, Nigeria.
Tel (234) 09 2342132-4, 234332-6
Fax (234) 09 23435363
Email info@cenbank.org
Web: www.cenbank.org
and
Central Bank of Nigeria
Tinubu Square
Private Mail Bag 12194
Lagos, Nigeria
Tel 234 1 266 0100
Fax 234 1 261 7005
South Africa
HOME LOAN AND MORTGAGE DISCLOSURE ACT 63 OF 2000
www.housing.gov.za/content/planned/
Acts/home%20loan%20and%20mortgage%20act.pdf
But: "Low-cost housing watchdog waits for rules," February 4, 2004
http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=341110
Regulatory contact:
Reserve Bank of South Africa
Bank Supervision Department
370 Church Street West
Pretoria 0002 South Africa
Fax: 27 12 313-3197 / 27 12 313-3929
INTREL@gwise.resbank.co.za
Web: www.reservebank.co.za
Banking law: see,
http://www.gbld.org/intermediate.aspx?targ=country_details.aspx&mode=country&countryid=34
And see, Republic of South Africa. National Treasury. 2003. Code of Good Practice
for Black Economic Empowerment in Public Private Partnerships. Pretoria: National
Treasury. [available at www.treasury.gov.za ].
South Africa Human Rights Commission; and see HumanRightsEnforcement.org
Equatorial Guinea
From the nation's
web site, one would conclude there is not much banking in Equatorial Guinea: the
website's most
recent statement, as of February 2005, concerns 1997: "Banking activity remained
stable in Equatorial Guinea all through 1997. loans awarded by two of the banks present in
the country rose to 6.2 Mds, from 8.3 to 14.5 Mds, while deposits increased from 10.4 to
14.3M. And banks witnessed a surplus cash balance of 1.85Mds."
The nation's website lists no bank regulatory agency, and only four banks (two
of which have no phone number listed):
CCEI-GE Common Cash Register for Saving and Investments of
Equatorial Guinea (240) 9 32 92
BGFI (240)
BEAC Bank of the States of Central Africa (240)
SGBGE General corporation of Banks of Equatorial Guinea (240) 9 33 37 / 8 27 21
But that's the tip of the iceberg. On January 27,
2005, Riggs Bank in Washington DC admitted to the following Statement of Offense, as
"a true and accurate description of Riggs Bank’s conduct in this matter” --
From in or about 1996 to
in or about 2004, Riggs Bank maintained numerous accounts for EG. Over the course of this
period, Riggs Bank opened over 30 accounts for the EG government, numerous EG senior
government officials, and their family members. Riggs Bank opened multiple personal
accounts for the EG president and his relatives and assisted in establishing offshore
shell corporations for the EG president and his sons (collectively, the “EG
Accounts”). By 2003, the EG accounts had become Riggs Bank’s largest single
relationship with balances and outstanding loans that totaled nearly $700 million.... In
September 1999, Riggs Bank assisted the EG President Obiang in the establishment of Otong
S.A., an offshore shell corporation, incorporated in the Bahamas, and held a money market
account for the corporation. Otong was a Private Investment Company... Over the course of
the history of the EG Accounts, the following transactions took place through an account
in the name of Otong S.A (the “Otong Account”):
a. April 20, 2000: $1 million deposit of U.S. currency;
b. March 8, 2001: $1.5 million deposit of U.S. currency;
c. April 20, 2001: $1 million deposit of U.S. currency;
d. September 5, 2001: $2 million deposit of U.S. currency;
e. September 17, 2001: $3 million deposit of U.S. currency; and
f. April 12, 2002: $3 million deposit of U.S. currency.
21. Riggs Bank failed to determine the background and possible purpose of these
transactions, and failed to file a SAR until after the OCC and Congressional investigators
brought the transactions to the bank’s attention. These transactions were suspicious
because of the cash nature of the deposits, because of the lack of understanding as to the
source or destination of the money, and because the transactions were not the sort in
which the particular customer would normally be expected to engage.
22. Additionally, Riggs Bank filed inaccurate CTRs on these cash deposits. The
CTRs listed the Otong account as an exporter of timber, rather than a PIC controlled by
the EG president. Certain Riggs Bank employee(s) knew this representation to be
inaccurate.
23. From June 2000 to December 2003, 16 separate wire transfers, totaling
approximately $26.4 million, were sent from an EG oil account at Riggs Bank, which held
oil royalty payments to the government of EG, to an account in the name of Kalunga
Company, S.A. at Banco Santander in Madrid, Spain.
ICP/Fair Finance Watch has previously
asked the Federal Reserve (and the U.K. FSA and others) to take action on the Santander
(and Spain/BBVA) and HSBC issues. See, e.g.,
“Request for Halt to Santander Takeover,” by Karl West, The (Glasgow) Herald,
September 23, 2004, www.theherald.co.uk/business/24582.html;
“New York Protest at SCH Plans,” by Jane Croft, Financial Times, September 23,
2004; “FSA Urged to Block Abbey Bid over Laundering
Report,” by Conal Walsh, The Observer, September 26, 2004, http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,1312662,00.html,
and, in Spanish, “Piden a las autoridades británicas que paren la OPA sobre
Abbey hasta que no se aclare el papel del Santander en un caso de blanqueo de dinero,” <www.elconfidencial.com/buscador/mostrar.asp?seccion=enexclusiva&id=4386>.
After the January 27, 2005, plea bargain on-the-cheap, ICP/FFW increased its
opposition. Developing...For or with more information, contact us.
Also, including regarding questions in Africa beyond Equatorial Guinea, see
Legal Times of Dec. 27, 2004: "Federal prosecutors are attempting to seize
property and nearly $1 million in cash from a former Riggs Bank executive accused of
embezzling money from foreign embassy accounts he oversaw... According to the court
documents, the executive, Simon Kareri, former senior vice president of the Riggs'
International Banking Group, was fired by the bank in January 2004 after an internal
investigation alleged that he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars... Kareri had been a
senior manager of Riggs' Embassy Banking Division since January 1994 and was responsible
for managing various embassy accounts as well as the personal accounts of foreign
government officials and their families. Those accounts included the African nations of
Equatorial Guinea, Benin, Mozambique, and Togo" -- regarding which,
a special report below
Some addresses:
Banque des Etats de l´Afrique Centrale - Headquarter
B.P. 1917
Yaoundé
CAMEROON
Tel.: ++237-223 40 30; -40 60; -35 73
Fax: ++237-223 33 29
Representation in Equatorial Guinea:
B.P. 501
Malabo
EQUATORIAL GUINEA
Tel.: ++240-9 20 10; 9 20 11; 9 20 64
Fax: ++240-9 20 06
West African Monetary Union
WAMU currently comprises : Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau, Côte
d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo
regarding which, a special
report below
Law:
"In addition to the Banking Law, the other legal texts which strengthen banking
supervision [include] the framework law defining and repressing usury, which has already
been adopted by several member States or which is being adopted by the others for its
ratification."
According to the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) web site --
"the Union comprises 59 banks and 28 financial establishments. Eight groups dominate
the WAMU banking system through 25 establishments with relatively wide national networks.
They are:
* the affiliated branches of the "Société Générale", based in Senegal and
Côte
d'Ivoire ;
* the partners of the Banque Nationale de
Paris (BNP), based in Burkina, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Senegal and Togo ;
* the branches of the "Crédit Lyonnais", established in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire,
Mali and Senegal ;
* the branches of Citibank-NA, based
in Côte
d'Ivoire and Senegal
;
* the banks of the group Bank of Africa (BOA), established in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte
d'Ivoire, Mali and Niger ;
* the Ecobank group, which has four entities in Benin, Burkina, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali and
Togo;
* the banks created in partnership with Lybia, in Burkina, Mali, Niger and Togo ;
* and affiliated bank of the Financial B.C. group in Benin."
Regulatory contact:
Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO)
Avenue Abdoulaye FADIGA - Dakar Sénégal
BP 3108 Dakar Sénégal
Tel: (221) 839 05 00
Fax: (221) 823 93 35
www.bceao.int/internet/bcweb.nsf/zcontact
"The Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) is the common central bank of the
eight (8) member states which form the West African Monetary Union (WAMU). BCEAO is a
public international institution whose headquarters are located in Dakar, Senegal. Besides
the sole right of monetary signs issue which it enjoys throughout the member states of the
Union, the Central Bank is responsible for [among other things] the definition of the
banking law applicable to banks and financial establishments within the WAMU."
Togo
As an outgrowth of the Riggs Bank / Equatorial Guinea inquiry,
and in light of the Feb. 2005 coup d'etat, see Legal Times of Dec. 27, 2004:
"Federal prosecutors are attempting to seize property and nearly $1 million in cash
from a former Riggs Bank executive accused of embezzling money from foreign embassy
accounts he oversaw... According to the court documents, the executive, Simon Kareri,
former senior vice president of the Riggs' International Banking Group, was fired by the
bank in January 2004 after an internal investigation alleged that he stole hundreds of
thousands of dollars... Kareri had been a senior manager of Riggs' Embassy Banking
Division since January 1994 and was responsible for managing various embassy accounts as
well as the personal accounts of foreign government officials and their families. Those
accounts included the African nations of Equatorial Guinea, Benin, Mozambique, and
Togo."
Branch of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO)
BP 120, Rue des Nimes
Lome, Togo
Tel: +228 221-2512
Fax: +228 221-7602
Lome-based Financial Bank has branches in Libreville (Gabon), Cotonou (Benin), Conakry
(Guinea), Lome (Togo) and N'djamena (Chad).
Also in Togo:
Banque Internationale pour l'Afrique au Togo SA,
BP 346, 13 rue du Commerce, Lome
(tel: 213-286, 212081; fax: 211-019, 220-238).
Banque Togolaise de Developpement,
BP 65, Angle Avenue des Nimes et Avenue Nicolas Grunitzky, Lome
(tel 213- 641/2; fax: 214-456).
Banque Togolaise pour le Commerce et l'Industrie
BP 363, 169 Boulevard du 13 Janvier, Lome
(tel: 214-641/42; fax: 213-265).
Ecobank-Togo
BP 3302, 20 Rue du Commerce, Lome
Tel: 217-214 - fax: 214237
Societe Inter Africaine de Banque
BP 4874, 14 rue du commerce, Lome
(tel: 212-830, 211-341; fax: 215-829).
Societe Nationale d'Investissement et Fonds Annexes
BP 2682, 11 Avenue du 24 Janvier, Lome
(tel: 216-221; fax: 216-225).
Union Togolaise de Banques
BP 359, Place Van Vollen Hoven, Lome (
tel: 216-411; fax: 212-206).
See also, the Togo-dedicated (though not frequently-enough updated) pages at [AI HRW]
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United States
FFW Campaigns In Other Media
Non-USA/Global
FFW
researches, documents and advocates around financial firms' activities, and how they
affect local communities. FFW files its findings with tribunals, regulatory agencies, and
elsewhere, including on this Web site . Click here to view analyses of several
multinational financial institutions' effects on consumers and the environment, worldwide:
for two examples, Citigroup and HSBC. Click here for some initial brainstorming on the application
of human rights and international law to the global financial services companies, and for
citations (where possible, links)
to resource material. Click here for some September 2004 campaigns -- PNC/Riggs (Finance Watch Reports of August 16,
2004, onwards), J.P. Morgan Chase,
etc.. Click here for an
ongoing report on the campaign to reform anti-money laundering, tax haven, and bank
secrecy laws. Click here for
the Human Rights Enforcement project,
including its new (9/04) criminal
justice and local human rights project. For or with more information, contact us.
For More information, see:
Human Rights & Finance:
Predatory Lending in a Deregulated Network Economy
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