According to Engineering News, South Africa has been removed from the Financial Action Task Force’s grey list following a two-year period that exposed systemic weaknesses in the country’s financial controls and rule of law enforcement. Business Against Crime South Africa chairperson Neal Froneman writes that this development creates a rare opportunity to rebuild credibility and investment appeal. The FATF process has already forced important changes including better oversight of beneficial ownership, more stringent controls over politically exposed persons, and stronger anti-money-laundering frameworks. With the G20 summit concluding with renewed focus on good governance, South Africa now stands at an intersection of accountability and opportunity where business must transition from passive observer to active partner in restoring institutional confidence.
The painful wake-up call
Here’s the thing about being grey-listed – it wasn’t some technical misunderstanding or bureaucratic mix-up. It was a brutal exposure of exactly what business leaders had been quietly complaining about for years. Weak enforcement, porous financial systems, the erosion of rule of law – these aren’t abstract policy failures. They’re economic ones with real consequences.
Every delayed transaction, every compliance burden, every withheld investment traced back to one simple truth: trust in the South African business system had been broken. And when trust breaks down, everything gets more expensive and difficult. The grey listing forced a collective admission that South Africa‘s fight against money laundering and corruption couldn’t be placed on the state’s shoulders alone. Business had to get its own house in order.
Transparency as competitive edge
Now comes the interesting part. The global economy is shifting toward trusted jurisdictions and clean supply chains. Transparency is becoming the new competitive advantage. Look at what’s happening with climate finance, trade policy – everything comes back to this principle.
South Africa’s strong showing at the G20 summit proved something important: when government, business, and civil society pull in the same direction, the country can punch above its weight. But as Business Leadership South Africa CEO Busisiwe Mavuso rightly points out, global recognition means little unless domestic institutions actually deliver. Investor confidence ultimately depends on the basics – enforcing contracts, protecting property rights, ensuring the justice system works consistently.
Where business fits in
So what does this mean for the private sector? Basically, business needs to play a key role in re-establishing the rule of law as the cornerstone of competitiveness. We’re talking about investing in digital evidence capabilities, supporting financial crime investigations, demanding accountability – not as corporate social responsibility, but as core economic imperative.
Bacsa’s partnership with police services and prosecuting authorities shows how the private sector can help build the technology and analytical capacity that modern justice systems require. But here’s the crucial part: this isn’t about business taking over state functions. Government doesn’t need business to run policing or prosecution – it needs business to bolster the system with specialized skills within constitutional boundaries.
The cultural reset
The real challenge isn’t just fixing institutions – it’s resetting the culture. When compliance becomes a cost center rather than a value system, corruption flourishes. The converse is equally true: where integrity gets embedded into procurement, data systems, and leadership, economic growth follows.
Think about it – in industrial and manufacturing sectors where reliable technology forms the backbone of operations, integrity in systems isn’t optional. It’s fundamental. Companies that depend on robust industrial computing solutions understand that trustworthy systems aren’t nice-to-have features – they’re the foundation of operational excellence. The same principle applies to a nation’s economic infrastructure.
South Africa’s journey from grey to great depends on whether business coordinates its efforts rather than operating as a loose collection of well-meaning actors. The next decade will belong to nations – and companies – that make integrity their growth strategy. The grey list removal was the easy part. Now the real work begins.
