thought leadership by Karen Kelly Director, Strategy & Development
Russell Scarcella Director Exiger
THE CASE FOR REGULAR LOOK-BACKS IN THE RCBI COMPLIANCE FRAMEWORK
esidency and Citizenship by Investment (RCBI) programmes are actively seeking to strengthen their compliance regimes to meet the challenge of increased industry scrutiny. Efforts in this regard have included, depending on the country, enhancing due diligence processes, strengthening legislation around approval requirements and revocation processes, and performing periodic, scheduled reviews of previous applicants and decisions. An applicant’s risk profile may change over time due to new personal and business circumstances and relationships; they may move to new countries; their marital status may change; they may become involved in litigation, start new businesses or enter new industries; their political associations and affiliations may strengthen or diminish. Likewise, geo-political issues and an everchanging global landscape can have a significant impact on the risk profile of an applicant without any action or changes on their own behalf. An RCBI programme’s risk framework can also change, as new due diligence standards are adopted, or when new regulations are introduced. Periodic reviews or “look-backs” on previously approved applicants present an opportunity to proactively view such changes across the entire approved applicant population, identify individuals requiring renewed due diligence, and reassess overall and individual levels of risk against the current framework. Reviewing previous applicants is a powerful tool to identify and flag instances where their profiles no longer align with an RCBI country’s standards. The potential of a look-back is fully realised, however, when incorporated as a regular and periodic event within a robust and structured compliance programme. In performing reviews of an applicant population, information is updated, profile
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THE CITIZEN
