Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations escort suspects (with heads covered) from the Barclays Bank of Kenya Queensway Branch after they were arrested March 19, 2019 for keeping fake currency in a safe deposit box. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NMG
The discovery of fake currency in a safe deposit box at a Barclays Bank Kenya branch is yet another indication of the many unregulated services that bedevil the financial system. It shows that there are loopholes in the banking sector that unscrupulous individuals exploit to move or store illicit cash.
It means the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) must police the financial system as diligently as possible to deter those who will use it to circulate fake money.
Safe deposit boxes are supposed to be exactly how they are described but it is clear that they are not safe for the wider financial system unless concerned institutions are clear on the rules of engagement with the concerned clients.
It appears that a client can put in money or deposits, other than what they have actually declared. It is time to look at the regulations with a view to tightening them and ensuring that the staff concerned with the deposits and management of the boxes do their job thoroughly and operate above board to ensure that they do not abet financial and economic crimes.
The fake cash issue also highlights the urgency needed in monitoring deposits and withdrawals following CBK’s recent concerns of depositors being able to withdraw in excess of one million shillings without triggering the alert system provided in banking regulations.
This is in light of the fact that safe deposit boxes could be yet another way in which huge amounts of unrecorded cash gets in and out of banks.
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