FICA, the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, requires accountable institutions - banks, financial services providers and certain other businesses - to verify who their clients are, known as know-your-client or KYC, and report suspicious or large cash transactions to the Financial Intelligence Centre.
What it means
In practice this means collecting and verifying identity documents, proof of address and, for businesses, proof of registration and beneficial ownership, before opening accounts or processing certain transactions.
Where it fits in
FICA compliance sits alongside POPIA in the category of information-handling obligations a business carries, but serves a different purpose - FICA is about verifying identity and flagging financial crime risk, POPIA is about protecting personal information generally.
Key rules
- Requires verifying client identity, KYC, before certain transactions or account openings.
- Requires reporting suspicious and large cash transactions.
- Applies most heavily to banks and financial services providers.
- Distinct from POPIA, which governs personal information handling generally.
