Title: Announcement Regarding Issuance of Disciplinary Board Resolution No. (68/2021 Disciplinary Board) (76/2021 Authority) and imposition of a fine of three thousand Dinars against Tharwa Investment Company for violating the rules of Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism

Announcement Regarding Issuance of Disciplinary Board Resolution No. (68/2021 Disciplinary Board) (76/2021 Authority) and imposition of a fine of three thousand Dinars against Tharwa Investment Company for violating the rules of Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism.

For the following reasons:
1) Provision of Article (3-14) of Module Sixteen (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism) of the Executive Bylaws of Law No. 7 of 2010 and their amendments:
It was conclusively proven to the Authority, by examining the selected sample of clients, that the due diligence procedures related to determining the client’s rating do not match the risk factors defined by the Company and specified in the risk matrix prepared by it, where the Company determines ratings that are contrary to what is mentioned in the prepared risk assessment matrix by it, and that of the clients group.
2) Violation of the provision of Article (5-4) of Module Sixteen (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism) of the Executive Bylaws of Law No. 7 of 2010 and their amendments:
It was conclusively proven to the Authority, by reviewing the Company’s organizational structure, that the Company’s compliance officer is not considered a senior management, as he is affiliated with the Executive Vice President of the Regulatory and Administrative Sector, who supervises the following departments (Human Resources – Legal Affairs – Finance – and Compliance).
3) Violation of the provision of Article (7-6) of Module Sixteen (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism) of the Executive Bylaws of Law No. 7 of 2010 and their amendments:
It was conclusively proven to the Authority that the coverage period for the internal audit tasks on anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism carried out by the company is limited to the period from July 1 to September 30 for each of the years from 2018 to 2020, which reflects the ineffectiveness and inadequacy of these tasks.
 
The Resolution included the infliction of the following penalty: -
“Tharwa Investment Company is fined an amount of one thousand Dinars for each violation”.

In this regard, the CMA emphasizes the implementation of CMA Law and its Executive Bylaws on all persons dealing in securities activities, and urges them to comply with these rules in order to promote investors' confidence, create a sound investment environment, and implement the Law according to the principles of fairness, transparency, and integrity in line with the best international practice.