Finance

Modern slavery reports are key

Reporting on your modern slavery efforts can win or lose your business’s reputation while strengthening your ESG reports and ensuring compliance. Discover a collaborative, expert, and innovative approach to ending forced labour together through our nonprofit business association.

[Challenges]

Taking action on immediate challenges

Modern slavery criminals make an annual profit of 150 billion USD, with much of that money passing through financial institutions, implicating your organisation in a serious crime. With modern slavery legislation being introduced in various countries, you can’t risk your company’s reputation and expose it to penalties by turning a blind eye to modern slavery risks. 

Are you faced with the following challenges holding you back from addressing modern slavery today?

  1. Ever-changing and hidden modern slavery risks

Human traffickers and abusers are skilled at hiding modern slavery by switching tactics, especially now emerging technology can fuel new modern slavery typologies. What makes matters worse is the lack of available data. How can I stay informed to detect and stop these illicit money flows effectively? 

  1. Hard to quantify modern slavery in the ‘S’ in ESG metrics

Ethical and ESG investing has been on the rise. Yet, modern slavery being part of the ‘S’ in ESG has been deemed intangible and challenging to measure, which may affect performance in ESG investing. How can I improve the ESG metrics about modern slavery?

  1. Undetected procurement modern slavery risks

Due to reliance on suppliers of branded merchandise and staff uniforms, as well as third-party labour providers, you may lack direct oversight of the true working conditions of these employees. Security guards, cleaning staff, refuse management, and catering staff are all low-wage jobs with a large migrant worker population that’s vulnerable. How can I look beyond the third parties?

  1. Rising illegal or exploitative funding risks during the recession

When people’s earnings cease, they are suddenly much more vulnerable to the lure of unregulated financial products, loan sharks, and taking on dangerously high-interest loans to stay afloat. Their bank accounts may be used to process these so-called loan payments. How can I detect the red flags of these money flows?

  1. Inadequate organisational awareness of modern slavery

My coworkers are wary of anti-slavery strategies for fear of jeopardising the institution’s reputation. They also believe that only anti-money laundering professionals should be involved in the fight against modern slavery, but relationship managers and branch staff can detect victims through red flags during interactions. I’m afraid I don’t know enough about modern slavery to educate them. How can I raise modern slavery awareness in my organisation?

Stay ahead of modern slavery risks with the Mekong Club

[Benefits]

While modern slavery is a hidden crime, running an organised trafficking network is nearly impossible without leaving a trail. Financial service providers must first anticipate risk, both now and in the uncertain future. This protects your company and vulnerable people while preventing criminals from accessing the financial systems they seek. The Mekong Club will work with you to develop strategies for identifying and mitigating these risks. You and every employee at your company will have access to the following membership benefits for an annual membership of 12,000 USD:

  1. Become an insider on the latest modern slavery typologies and best practices by joining our confidential quarterly financial services working group meetings, networking with like-minded professionals in our community and sharing data.
  1. Amplify organisational awareness and specialised knowledge of modern slavery by incorporating our multilingual e-learning videos and training with expert speakers from various sectors for senior management, anti-money laundering, and frontline professionals. This can improve accountability and departmental cooperation to end modern slavery.
  1. Discover where you’re at with your anti-slavery strategies in our baseline assessment when you join as a member. From transaction monitoring and client risk rating methodologies to reporting, our expert team will develop tailored road-mapping strategies.
  1. Improve customer onboarding and review processes that address modern slavery as a business risk by educating frontline staff about modern slavery reg flags and strengthening know-your-customer and customer-due-diligence processes to identify high-risk clients.
  1. Identify and remediate contract staff within your buildings, such as security guards and cleaners, who may be at risk of exploitation to ensure compliance with modern slavery legislation.
  1. Learn how to utilise and optimise modern slavery indicators with clear and measurable metrics within ESG investment funds to improve sustainable investment and financing decisions.
  1. Gain personalised support during crisis management.

And much more.

Mekong Club Members

[Please insert reel of all members gliding]

“During our Financial Crime Awareness Week, we had speakers from the AFP, NSW Crime Commission, The Mekong Club, AUSTRAC, ATO, CDPP and many more. Matt Friedman and Phoebe Ewen presented on the topic of Human Slavery, and it was one of the highest attended talks of the forum, with over 500 people. It was an extremely gripping presentation, and we have been inundated with requests for further presentations on the topic.”

“Modern slavery can be a complicated and sensitive topic to discuss as a company. However, from the beginning, Mekong Club has created a safe space to dig deeper and look for solutions, rather than finger-pointing”

Don’t miss this opportunity to improve your business

Talk to one of our experts to see if the Mekong Club is right for you.