In August 2020, the organization The Sentry warned of the possibility of the existence of a North Korean money laundering network in the DRC. In its report, the NGO alleges that in 2018, two North Korean businessmen, Pak Hwa Song and Hwang Kil Su, created a construction company in the DRC.
“They participated in operations that would go against the sanctions of the European Union, the United Nations (UN) and the United States. Despite strict international bans, these people managed to open a bank account for their company, Congo Aconde, and carried out work in the country. ”
Congo Aconde won a contract to erect statues in the province of Lualaba. According to the reading of The Sentry, this activity is explicitly prohibited by UN sanctions adopted in 2016. The organization goes further: “Congolese public funds have financed the statues, which is also contrary to UN sanctions”.
“The Congo Aconde dossier is an appeal to banks, governments and multilateral institutions to prevent violations of sanctions in the DRC. The weakness of internal control systems and surveillance mechanisms in the DRC attract people trying to evade sanctions. The Congolese banking sector and the national economy are thus exposed to significant risks ”, says the organization initiated by George Clooney and John Prendergast, which reveals that Congo Aconde has an account at Afriland First Bank.
“The account has enabled the company to move funds internationally through BMCE Bank International, identified in documents viewed by The Sentry as the designated banking partner to process dollar and euro transactions for the account. of Congo Aconde in DRC, ”says the organization.
Threat to international peace and security
The Sentry points out that “the sanctions programs targeting North Korea are mainly trying to cut off its access to the international financial system because the revenues generated abroad may eventually be used to finance its program of weapons of mass destruction.”
The organization goes further: “The access to banking services obtained by Congo Aconde could therefore constitute a threat to international peace and security rather than a simple inattention”.
A Afriland First Bank, on relativise.
“We must not speculate. When there is a sanction, you have to read the sanction. I enter the list of people concerned. What if the ones you’re talking about aren’t here? When a North Korean wins a deal with the state, I have to deny him opening an account because he is North Korean. All we do at the Bank is take risks. People are saying that they made transfers for millions of dollars. But it was Congolese francs that they received from the public treasury and that did not exceed the equivalent in value of 200 thousand dollars, ”told ACTUALITE.CD and RFI Patrick Kafindo, deputy general manager of the bank.
He adds:
“The only thing is that in order to win the market, they had been asked for a deposit of bank guarantees of 50,000 dollars, that’s what they have in their dollar account, but this money, they don’t have not touched. When we check, all transactions were made in Congolese francs. Should we refuse to deal with all North Koreans? They win their markets with the Congolese state and I must be blocked because they are the North Koreans ”.
For him, these sanctions do not concern these two North Koreans.
“We sanction the State, the company or the person. When a North Korean opens an account, it’s a risk and I analyze it. I see 200,000 USD in francs received through the governor ”.
At the Presidency of the Republic, some advisers of Felix Tshisekedi kick in touch. “We should not alert people for nothing. There is nothing with these North Koreans. Once, we even grabbed the satellite suitcase to check, but there was nothing. Only statuettes ”, says a close collaborator of the Head of State.
However, according to The Sentry, Pak and de Hwang “probably worked in the DRC for a little-known North Korean government company, the Korea Paekho Trading Corporation”.
“The US, UN, and EU sanctions that are relevant in this case target certain kinds of activity (and the word activities should be emphasized), and not necessarily specific individuals or entities. That is to say, Pak and Hwang carried out business activities which are prohibited by these same sanctions and then Afriland provided banking services which facilitated the participation of North Koreans in prohibited activities ”, told ACTUALITE .CD John Dell’Osso, Senior Investigator, at The Sentry.
And add:
“And, as we pointed out in our reports, documents provided by Congo Aconde to Afriland clearly suggested that the company had a business purpose which is prohibited. Banks are expressly prohibited from providing such services to North Korean-controlled companies that have prohibited activities as their business purpose. But, in addition, except in humanitarian cases, banks are prohibited from providing banking services to any company that is controlled by North Koreans, regardless of the activity.
The Sentry calls on the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to change its view on the risks of illicit financing from North Korea, “to include the risks of doing business with parts of the banking industry from the DRC ”.
The organization also calls on the US Treasury Department and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help Congolese banks to set up AML / CFT standards, and call on the Central Bank of the DRC to improve the implementation of AML standards. and address legislative gaps
The Sentry urges the Congolese government to strengthen the compliance of local financial institutions, notably by supporting the development of a national risk assessment.
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