Deadline looms for Bipa company owner disclosures
The Business and Intellectual Property Authority (Bipa) will this month gradually deregister companies that have failed to comply with the statutory disclosure requirements for beneficial owners.
A beneficial owner is a person who directly or indirectly exercises effective control over a company.
Bipa announced at the end of last week that it would deregister non-compliant companies starting 16 May. "Approximately 141 000 firms and companies have not yet complied with their obligation to disclose beneficial owners," Ainna Kaundu, Bipa's acting executive director, said.
The disclosure requirement was introduced through amendments to the Companies Act of 2004 and the Close Corporations Act of 1988 and came into force in July 2023. This requirement is an international obligation imposed on Namibia by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a UN financial regulatory agency. FATF sets global standards to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.
The FATF 2023 found Namibia's safeguards in this regard to be deficient and placed the country on its grey list. The requirement to disclose beneficial ownership is intended to combat financial crime and protect Namibia's financial system from illicit money flows. On 11 April, BIPA informed all non-compliant companies of the risk of deregistration starting 16 May.
Bipa said the deregistration process follows a prescribed procedure, with non-compliant companies to be placed on a list of "inactive companies".
After at least six months on this list, they are deregistered in accordance with applicable law if no disclosure is made.
Deregistration has significant legal and financial consequences. "The registration will be cancelled, and ownership of the assets of the deregistered company may ultimately revert to the state," warned Kaundu.
A beneficial owner is a person who directly or indirectly exercises effective control over a company.
Bipa announced at the end of last week that it would deregister non-compliant companies starting 16 May. "Approximately 141 000 firms and companies have not yet complied with their obligation to disclose beneficial owners," Ainna Kaundu, Bipa's acting executive director, said.
The disclosure requirement was introduced through amendments to the Companies Act of 2004 and the Close Corporations Act of 1988 and came into force in July 2023. This requirement is an international obligation imposed on Namibia by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a UN financial regulatory agency. FATF sets global standards to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.
The FATF 2023 found Namibia's safeguards in this regard to be deficient and placed the country on its grey list. The requirement to disclose beneficial ownership is intended to combat financial crime and protect Namibia's financial system from illicit money flows. On 11 April, BIPA informed all non-compliant companies of the risk of deregistration starting 16 May.
Bipa said the deregistration process follows a prescribed procedure, with non-compliant companies to be placed on a list of "inactive companies".
After at least six months on this list, they are deregistered in accordance with applicable law if no disclosure is made.
Deregistration has significant legal and financial consequences. "The registration will be cancelled, and ownership of the assets of the deregistered company may ultimately revert to the state," warned Kaundu.
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