Mozambique: Shareholders must declare company ownership – AIM

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Mozambique: Shareholders must declare company ownership – AIM

1:48 CAT | 19 Aug 2025

Photo: AIM

The Mozambican Justice Ministry has called on shareholders in commercial companies to declare their effective ownership, as a way of booting the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.

According to Arlindo Matavele, the Registrar of Legal Entities at the Ministry, who was speaking on Monday in Maputo at the 1st International Seminar on Compliance and Risk Management, the measure covers all individuals or legal entities that hold a stake of 10 per cent or more in a commercial company or who exercise control over it.

He explained that the mandatory declaration will allow the authorities to know, in a more transparent way, who exercises effective control over commercial companies, associations, foundations and religious denominations.

Business companies, limited liability companies, public limited companies, limited partnerships, simplified joint stock companies, as well as citizens who effectively control legal persons or entities without legal personality, are required to declare the beneficial owner.

“It is not only the beneficial owner in terms of shareholding, which is 10 per cent. We also have those entities that do not have share capital, but must declare as beneficial owners those who exercise control over these entities”, he said.

The measure, he said, also covers non-governmental organizations, religious denominations, foundations, cooperatives and representations of foreign entities.

“The concept of beneficial owner does not apply only to commercial companies, it also applies to religious denominations and NGOs. All these entities are subject to the declaration. Some studies show that many religious associations and foundations are not used for the purposes for which they were established”, he said.

“An association has a specific purpose, such as supporting disadvantaged children. But when we check, the facilities and the people who actually run the association are not the same as those listed in the articles of association. The same is true of some foundations and religious denominations”, he added.

According to Matavele, failure to comply with the measure will result in penalties. “If there is a transfer of shares, appointment of a new administrator or change in the corporate purpose, it is necessary to update the beneficial owner declaration”, he said.

For his part, the chairperson of the Executive Committee for Business Training and Support of the Mozambique Chamber of Commerce (CCM), Fernando Robert, said that the measure will contribute to Mozambique’s removal from the so-called “Grey List” of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

“Getting off the ‘Grey List’ is the immediate goal. But the real objective is to build a reliable, safe and competitive Mozambique that inspires confidence in investors, facilitates commercial and financial transactions, and promotes the sustainable growth of our business sector”, he said.

The “grey list”, officially known as “Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring” includes countries identified by the FATF as having strategic deficiencies in their measures to counter money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

Countries on this list are subject to increased monitoring and scrutiny by the FATF. The list is intended to serve as a warning to the countries concerned to improve their performance and comply with international standards.

Source: AIM