Sameer Kumandan | Managing Director | SearchWorks | SW360 | mail me |
Earlier in November 2025, the South African Reserve Bank announced administrative sanctions against two finance companies. Regulators imposed these sanctions after the companies failed to comply with the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA).
Discovery Bank received the larger penalty. Regulators issued a R3 million fine because the bank failed to report 24 suspicious transactions on time. Meanwhile, authorities issued eZI Remit (formerly Ezaga Remit (Pty) Limited) with a warning. The warning addressed weaknesses in the company’s FICA-related control measures.
In both cases, regulators linked the compliance failures to inadequate FICA training. Discovery Bank, for example, had not trained 84 of its 155 new employees within 30 days of appointment. In addition, 47 of its 109 employees had not completed annual refresher training within one year. Finally, two of the bank’s six senior managers had not received training within 30 days of their appointment.
Compliance culture must start with people
These cases send a clear signal about South Africa’s tightening stance on financial crime. At the same time, they highlight an important lesson for accountable institutions.
Organisations must treat people as the frontline defence against financial crime. Therefore, institutions should prioritise strong FICA training programmes. Effective programmes ensure that employees understand the law and apply compliant behaviour consistently during daily operations.
There are practical and actionable strategies that institutions can use to strengthen FICA training and embed compliance across teams.
Design training thoughtfully
First, organisations should design training sessions with staff workloads in mind. Employees must complete training alongside their normal responsibilities. Therefore, training should remain short and focused.
Avoid long lectures, slide-heavy presentations, and lengthy manuals. Too much information at once can overwhelm employees and reduce retention. Instead, short modules that last 10–15 minutes often work best.
Furthermore, tailor FICA training to the compliance responsibilities of each team. For example, onboarding teams must understand Customer Due Diligence (CDD) and Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements in detail. Meanwhile, sales teams should learn how to explain document requests to clients without creating distrust.
Be clear about real-world scenarios
Next, move beyond theory and introduce practical examples. Real-world scenarios help employees apply rules correctly in different situations.
For example, staff should know how to respond if a client refuses to provide proof of address. They should also understand what actions to take when a long-standing client suddenly begins unusual cash transactions.
These scenarios help employees recognise red flags more easily. At the same time, FICA training should clearly explain the consequences of non-compliance. These risks include financial penalties, reputational damage, and operational disruption.
Use compliance cheat sheets
In addition, organisations should create simple compliance guides. Checklists and cheat sheets allow employees to reference key information quickly when needed. These resources may include document verification checklists. They may also include lists of high-risk customer indicators or examples of suspicious transactions.
Many training gaps occur when employees do not know how to respond to compliance questions. However, simple scripts can make these conversations easier.
Examples include:
- “FICA helps us verify who we are dealing with. It ensures we comply with the law and helps prevent criminal activity from entering the financial system.”
- “We do this not just because it’s required by law, but because it helps prevent fraud, identity theft, and financial crime. It’s in everyone’s best interest.”
- “By following FICA, we make sure your account is secure and that we’re dealing with legitimate customers only.”
Run training sessions regularly
FICA regulations evolve frequently. Therefore, organisations must update employees regularly through refresher sessions.
Short quarterly updates work particularly well. These sessions keep compliance top of mind and reinforce correct behaviour. They also provide opportunities to explain new regulatory developments. Additionally, organisations should conduct mock exercises and spot checks. These simulations allow employees to practise real situations before they encounter them in practice.
Many employees mistakenly believe that FICA compliance matters only during customer onboarding. Effective FICA training must therefore emphasise ongoing due diligence throughout the customer relationship.
Involve senior leadership
Organisational culture always begins with leadership. When senior executives attend training sessions, they signal that compliance matters. This visible commitment strengthens organisational accountability. However, if senior leaders cannot attend every session, organisations can still demonstrate support.
For example, short video messages from leadership can introduce training sessions. These messages remind employees that compliance responsibilities apply across every level of the organisation. Strong leadership support also reinforces the importance of continuous FICA training.
Prioritise psychological safety
Finally, organisations must create an environment where employees feel safe speaking up. Staff should feel comfortable asking questions, admitting uncertainty and reporting suspicious activity.
When employees feel safe, they are more likely to escalate unusual customer behaviour. They also become more willing to identify gaps in existing processes.
As part of FICA training, organisations should reinforce the importance of early reporting. Employees must understand that managers will not punish them for raising concerns. This approach reduces silent non-compliance and strengthens overall risk detection.
Technology can support compliance learning
Although VOCA from us does not function as a training tool, it can support compliance processes. The platform automates many underlying compliance tasks. As a result, institutions can allocate more time and resources to FICA training and staff development.
In addition, VOCA generates detailed reports, risk ratings, and audit trails using real-time data. Organisations can use these outputs during internal training sessions. For example, teams can examine real compliance documentation to understand what effective reporting looks like.
Strengthening defences against financial crime
Financial crime continues to evolve as criminals adopt more sophisticated tactics. Therefore, accountable institutions require strong tools and well-trained employees to detect suspicious activities.
Automated compliance tools can simplify regulatory reporting and oversight. At the same time, effective FICA training strengthens employees’ ability to identify risks and act quickly.
When institutions combine technology with strong training programmes, they strengthen their overall compliance framework. Most importantly, they position their teams to stay one step ahead of financial crime.
