Holding corrupt actors to account

With greater financial transparency we can close the loopholes that allow people to hide crime and corruption.

Australia is a major destination of the world’s dirty money. Much of this dirty money flows out of poorer countries, and into the economies of wealthy countries. This robs local people of their national wealth and can distort markets where it ends up—such as real estate.

Our laws against foreign bribery and money laundering have loopholes that enable people to hide corruption and the proceeds of crime. Meanwhile, the lack of transparency over company ownership makes it too easy to set up shell companies and hide money flows.

Australia can stop the flow of dirty money by strengthening our laws to better prevent, detect and stop dirty money from crime and corruption.

Our priorities

Expose and hold corrupt actors and their enablers to account.
End corporate secrecy and concealment of corruption proceeds.
Ensure prevention and exposure of Australian businesses and public officials involved in bribery, theft and abuse of power.

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Foreign bribery

Bribery is one of the most direct and damaging forms of corruption worldwide. It is a threat to democracy and the rule of law, and it’s a major obstacle to fair economic development in poorer countries.

Foreign bribery can also fly under the radar because it’s very difficult to detect and our investigative and enforcement agencies are not sufficiently equipped to go after individuals.

Australia now has stronger foreign bribery laws and adequate procedures for companies, but we still lack a deferred prosecution agreement scheme. We need enforcement, investigative capacity, and a DPA regime to encourage companies to cooperate and report bribery.

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Key resource

Transparency International’s latest foreign bribery report, Exporting Corruption, finds most countries are not doing enough

The latest foreign bribery assessment finds most of the world’s top exporting countries are not doing enough to stop foreign bribery, and many are sliding backwards.

The research finds Australia also continues to lag in efforts to stop foreign bribery.

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Money laundering

Australia is a major destination of the world’s dirty money. Much of this dirty money is flowing out of poorer countries, and into the economies of wealthy countries.

Money laundering is a crime, and Australia has now strengthened its laws to make it harder for criminals to fly under the radar.

We need to make sure the new anti-money laundering laws work in practice, so that real estate agents, lawyers, corporate service providers and accountants – professions that are more likely to encounter illicit money – do proper due diligence and report suspicious transactions.

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Beneficial ownership & due diligence

When company ownership information is not accessible in a central and credible place, it’s hard to do adequate due diligence.

This leads to a culture of anonymous shell companies, makes it hard to research risks, track relationships, find conflicts of interest and detect corruption.

Australia is now rolling out a centralised corporate register, but it’s still too easy to set up a business with incorrect information or to hide one’s identity.

We need to ensure information in our corporate register is correct, accessible and up-to-date, and reveals companies’ true beneficial owners.

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Kleptocracy

In kleptocratic regimes, those in power engage in large-scale theft, often siphoning off public funds, resources, and wealth for their personal enrichment.

The consequences of kleptocracy can be devastating, leaving nations impoverished and citizens disenfranchised.

We are committed to dismantling the systems that allow kleptocracy to flourish, both in Australia and globally. We work in close collaboration with chapters across Asia and internationally to combat kleptocracy through advocacy, research and coalition-building.

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