Monrovia – The Financial Intelligence Agency of Liberia (FIA) has imposed a fine of L$15 million on Orange Money Liberia (OML) for failing to meet critical Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) requirements as outlined in Liberia’s AML/CFT Act of 2021.
According to a release, the fine follows a comprehensive risk-based compliance inspection conducted by the FIA from September 2 to 13, 2024. The inspection assessed the adequacy of OML’s AML/CFT compliance programs, including policies, procedures, internal controls, and adherence to regulations such as the Mobile Money Regulations (No. CBL/RSD/003/2014), Corporate Governance Regulations (No. CBL/RSD/001/2012), and the CBL Risk Management Guidelines.
The FIA identified several major violations, including Limited Board Oversight: Inadequate oversight by the Board of Directors on money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation risks, with no periodic review of compliance performance.
Confidentiality Breach: A potential breach involving the processing and reporting of Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) by a third-party entity, CECOM, operating in another jurisdiction—contravening Section 15.3.22 (2.b) of the AML/CFT Act.
Non-compliance with Ownership Regulations: Failure to allow private Liberian investors or Liberian-owned institutions to subscribe to at least 20% of OML’s capital, in violation of Paragraph 5, Section 6 of the Mobile Money Regulation.
Outdated Compliance Manual: OML’s 2024 AML/CFT Policies and Procedures Manual has not been updated to align with the 2021 AML/CFT Act, relevant regulations, and corporate governance requirements.
Weak Risk Management: The absence of a robust risk management framework to properly classify high-risk customers, including politically exposed persons (PEPs), money service businesses, and cash-intensive agents like supermarkets, wholesalers, and forex bureaus.
Inadequate Monitoring Systems: Full agents and merchants operate with “unlimited transaction limits,” without proper systems to detect and report suspicious transactions. This has resulted in extremely low STR submission rates.
Given these violations and the significant weaknesses in OML’s AML/CFT control framework, the FIA has ordered the company to pay a L$15 million fine into the Government of Liberia’s escrow account within ten working days—from May 27 to June 9, 2025.
Additionally, Orange Money Liberia is required to submit a remediation plan. It is tasked to develop and submit an action plan with clear timelines, approved by OML management and certified by the FIA, by Monday, June 23, 2025.
The company is also requested to address deficiencies by implementing appropriate corrective measures to address all deficiencies identified in the compliance inspection and mitigate AML/CFT risks no later than September 1, 2025. The FIA emphasized that it will continue to take appropriate supervisory actions to ensure OML’s full compliance with all AML/CFT obligations.
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