REMITTANCE firms want the government to publish a list of firms that were cleared of terror link allegations, following last year’s disruption in which 13 money transfer companies were temporarily blacklisted.
Kenya Forex Remittance Association CEO Anthony Wachira yesterday said failure by government to publish the list of cleared companies has hampered the operations of some of its members abroad.
“While we acknowledge that the government lifted the ban on the affected operators, some of them are still experiencing problems conducting business on the international markets because they are considered linked to terrorism,” said Wachira.
He was speaking at a luncheon held at a Nairobi hotel to celebrate the opening of Global Money Transfer Ltd, which has an exclusive agreement with international money transfer switch Taaj Service. This partnership will enable GMT clients send and receive money from more than 200 locations globally.
GMT has 16 outlets in Kenya and will facilitate money transfer to and from UK, Canada, US and Australia. The service will allow recipients get money directly into their local bank accounts or mobile phones.
Last April, the government halted operations of 13 remittance companies which were among 86 individuals and local organisations that were suspected to be funding terror groups.
After investigations, the Central Bank then cleared some of the firms to continue trading but has never published the list of the remittance companies given the clearance.
“Our filtering system is very rigorous and will continue to be very rigorous,” said GMT commercial director Abdullahi Sharif adding that all customers have been trained to adhere to the Know-Your-Customer rule by the CBK.
Parliament’s Leader of the Majority Aden Duale who was the chief guest at the event told money remittance firms to ensure traceability of funds to prohibit money laundering.
He also urged regulators to vet companies fairly based on their fundamentals and operations and not the communities they serve or belong to.
