Strong anti-money laundering system will attract investors - Odei-Kissi

Ghana needs to intensify its fight against money laundering to boost foreign investments, Mr Alex Odei-Kissi, CEO of PSA Professional Institute has said.

Mr Odei-Kissi, an Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Tuition Provider with over 20 years’ experience in Accounting and Auditing said failure to fight money laundering will result in “the country taking on a criminal image and it will not attract investors into the country”.

Speaking in an interview with Moro Awudu on the ‘Think Ahead’ series on Class91.3FM on Tuesday, July 26, Mr Odei-Kissi emphasised the importance of building a strong information system to help fight money laundering.

“With lack of information systems, it is very difficult to trace when money laundering activities are going on,” he noted.

He pointed out that: “All organisations including financial and non-financial institutions are supposed to train their employees in specific areas to be able to identify suspicious money laundering transactions”.

In the banks and other financial institutions, “significant unusual deposits and withdrawals” could be a sign of money laundering activity hence initial steps must be taken to report to money laundering officers who are normally experienced and knowledgeable and serve as a point of contact who take it up to report to the financial intelligence unit within the country [for further investigation]”.

He said money laundering is a global challenge which needs concerted efforts to curb.

The ‘Think Ahead’ series is an ACCA initiative in collaboration with Class 91.3 FM and airs every Tuesday between 8:30am and 10:00am and takes the form of a brief presentation of the specific subject matter under discussion while listeners are allowed to contribute and ask questions on the subject.

ACCA is the global body for professional accountants and aims to offer business-relevant, first-choice qualifications to people of ability and ambition around the world who seek a rewarding career in accountancy, finance, and management.