Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za

3-minute read
07 October 2023 | 20:41 CAT

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South Africa is grappling with various financial and banking crimes, spanning contact crimes, digital offences, application fraud, and card fraud.

These criminal activities greatly shadow the nation’s economy, society, and governance.

SABRIC released its annual crime statistics report this week, and the key findings explain the situation’s complexity.

SABRIC releases these reports annually to educate the South’s people about the risks associated with financial and banking crime.

The CEO of SABRIC, Nischal Mewalall, spoke to Radio Islam International. He said this year’s statistics are vital as the stats coincide with the greylisting of South Africa.

Mewalall highlighted the key takeaways from this year’s report.

“Firstly, the crimes have evolved over the years and become extremely organized and complexed. The second observation is that the crimes are paying handsomely, the rewards far outweigh the risks and fundamentally we are losing billions from the formal and informal economy to the illicit economy,” he says.

Despite the deployment of dye-stain technology, ATM explosive attacks surged by 23% in 2022, posing persistent challenges in preventing these high-risk criminal acts.

“Historically people would shy away from dye-stained money. These days we are noting that criminals are still retaining the loot even after the money has been dye stained which is a major concern for us. It suggests there is something else going on in the system that we may need to explore and understand,” Mewalall said.

South Africa witnessed an alarming 36% surge in reported incidents of online banking fraud in 2022. Fraudsters deployed various tactics, including social engineering and “vishing” scams, to deceive victims into divulging sensitive information.

Financial losses per incident in online banking fraud soared in 2022, reflecting a 9% increase from the previous year. Phishing and vishing were the preferred methods for illicitly accessing confidential banking data.

Meanwhile, a notable 39% decrease in branch-before-deposit robbery incidents in 2022 can be attributed to the successful arrest of main suspects in specific regions.

“Collaboration among government entities, the private sector, and civil society is paramount to effectively combating financial crime. The commitment of organizations like SABRIC to bolster law enforcement capabilities, fortify regulatory frameworks, and promote transparency and accountability is unwavering,” Mewalall said.

Listen to the full interview with Mufti Yusuf Moosagie on Your World Today.