
Beneficial Ownership Fact Sheet
Snapshot of global progress and member-level examples of beneficial ownership work in OGP
Beneficial ownership transparency has emerged as an important policy tool in countries for combating corruption, stemming illicit financial flows, and fighting tax evasion.
Overview | Recommendations | Partners | Data | Documents | Commitments | Recent Posts
Anonymous companies are often used to hide corruption. In most countries, disclosure of the individual(s) who ultimately controls or profits from a business is not required. This can result in people using anonymous companies to hide corruption. According to the World Bank, roughly 70 percent of the biggest corruption cases between 1980 and 2010 involved anonymous companies.
As of August 2020, nearly 30 OGP countries have made commitments to advance global norms on beneficial ownership transparency.
In May 2019 – at the OGP Global Summit – OGP supported the launch of a global coalition of governments and partners advancing beneficial ownership transparency. This Beneficial Ownership Leadership Group, initiated by the United Kingdom and supported by partners, including OpenOwnership, seeks to advance a set of co-created principles through OGP and other platforms.
Argentina, Armenia, Finland, Kenya, Latvia, Norway, Slovakia, and Ukraine have made formal endorsements to join the coalition.
Snapshot of global progress and member-level examples of beneficial ownership work in OGP
Beneficial ownership transparency has emerged as an essential means for combating corruption, stemming illicit financial flows, and fighting tax evasion.
Watch this video case study that highlights early results from the Slovak Republic's public register on beneficial ownership.
Partners
Coalitions
The data below is drawn from the 2019 OGP Global Report. You can view and learn more about the report here.
These are members making OGP commitments to improve their performance in the respective policy area. As members that have demonstrated political commitment through OGP, the next step is ensuring that implemented commitments have maximal impact.
Key
Indicates that member has a starred commitment in this policy area.
Corruption continues to undermine democratic institutions worldwide. Without strong commitments focused on political integrity, achieving OGP’s partnership-wide goals of economic…
2021, , Web Page
Transparency International shares recommendations for governments serious about tackling the impact of corruption on women and ensuring their participation in…
2020, Outbound Link, Web Page
A paper from Financial Accountability, Transparency and Integrity (FACTI.org)
2020, Outbound Link, Web Page
Watch this video case study that highlights early results from the Slovak Republic's public register on beneficial ownership.
2019, Perspective, Web Page
Beneficial ownership transparency has emerged as an essential means for combating corruption, stemming illicit financial flows, and fighting tax evasion.
2019, Document, PDF
Snapshot of global progress and member-level examples of beneficial ownership work in OGP
2019, Document, PDF
A few weeks ago, the Government of Georgia hosted the Fifth Open Government Partnership Global Summit in Tbilisi. The event…
2018, Perspective, Web Page
When a country first joins OGP, and we speak with civil society and government for the first time,…
2017, Perspective, Web Page
Explore EITI’s resources on beneficial ownership disclosure for the oil, gas and mining industries.
2019, Outbound Link, Web Page
Read case studies from Global Witness featuring investigations uncovering corruption dealings through anonymous companies.
2019, Outbound Link, Web Page
Explore this guide for practical resources, knowledge sharing, and good practice on beneficial ownership transparency that is being developed by…
, Outbound Link, Web Page
Learn about the debates surrounding the intersection between data protection and privacy laws and tackling corruption through beneficial ownership registers…
2019, Outbound Link, Web Page
OpenOwnership, The B Team and Engine Room share the rationales and risks for the public disclosure of ownership data.
2019, Outbound Link, Web Page
Read Transparency International’s report for model commitments, best practice for opening registers, and more.
2018, Outbound Link, Web Page
2018, Document, PDF
In recent years, we’ve seen significant progress on clamping down on the abuse of anonymous company ownership through beneficial ownership…
2018, Perspective, Web Page
The Beneficial Ownership Leadership Group came together in 2019 to drive the global policy shift towards free, open beneficial ownership…
2020, , Web Page
Many beneficial ownership registration frameworks fail to obtain beneficial ownership information from listed companies for two main reasons. Tax Justice…
2020, Outbound Link, Web Page
NO0053, 2016, Anti-Corruption
KE0014, 2016, Anti-Corruption
GH0014, 2015, Anti-Corruption
FR0009, 2015, Anti-Corruption
UK0048, 2013, Anti-Corruption
AL0066, 2020, Anti-Corruption
KE0024, 2020, Anti-Corruption
KE0025, 2020, Anti-Corruption
AZ0053, 2020, Anti-Corruption
UA0092, 2020, Anti-Corruption
LR0037, 2020, Anti-Corruption
ID0127, 2020, Anti-Corruption
NO0061, 2019, Anti-Corruption
SL0025, 2019, Anti-Corruption
IT0059, 2019, Anti-Corruption
MN0044, 2019, Anti-Corruption
PH0061, 2019, Anti-Corruption
AF0017, 2019, Anti-Corruption
NG0016, 2019, Anti-Corruption
NG0019, 2019, Anti-Corruption
NG0020, 2019, Anti-Corruption
BF0016, 2019, Anti-Corruption
MX0083, 2019, Anti-Corruption
MX0085, 2019, Anti-Corruption
SK0129, 2019, Anti-Corruption
CR0063, 2019, Anti-Corruption
MK0122, 2018, Anti-Corruption
CA0066, 2018, Anti-Corruption
CL0061, 2018, Anti-Corruption
KE0018, 2018, Anti-Corruption
ID0092, 2018, Anti-Corruption
AM0037, 2018, Anti-Corruption
PY0054, 2018, Anti-Corruption
UA0076, 2018, Anti-Corruption
GT0106, 2018, Anti-Corruption
LR0035, 2017, Anti-Corruption
GH0022, 2017, Anti-Corruption
PH0052, 2017, Anti-Corruption
NG0003, 2017, Anti-Corruption
NG0006, 2017, Anti-Corruption
LV0038, 2017, Anti-Corruption
MN0033, 2016, Anti-Corruption
UK0063, 2016, Anti-Corruption
ZA0023, 2016, Anti-Corruption
AU0002, 2016, Anti-Corruption
UA0061, 2016, Anti-Corruption
AU0003, 2016, Anti-Corruption
BG0064, 2016, Anti-Corruption
BG0070, 2016, Anti-Corruption
IE0048, 2016, Anti-Corruption
US0082, 2015, Anti-Corruption
UK0051, 2013, Anti-Corruption
See how OGP members are making progress on beneficial ownership transparency, a key tool for combatting tax evasion and stopping illicit financial flows.
OGP turns ten in 2021. With more than 4,500 commitments made to date, we have much to celebrate. We are launching Open Renewal in our anniversary year in order to look forward and build on the lessons and accomplishments of the past.
Sanjay Pradhan es director ejecutivo de la Alianza para el Gobierno Abierto (OGP por sus siglas en inglés). María Barón es la directora ejecutiva de Directorio Legislativo y copresidenta del Comité Directivo de la sociedad civil de OGP, junto con…
Corruption continues to undermine democratic institutions worldwide. Without strong commitments focused on political integrity, achieving OGP’s partnership-wide goals of economic recovery, tackling systemic inequalities, safeguarding threats to democracy, and having a more citizen-centered democracy will be even more difficult.
[related_sidebar] This example was featured in the OGP 2020 Annual Report. Read the full report here. In August 2020, President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria signed the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), putting in place a new registry that will…
Read how reformers in Nigeria are working to end illicit financial flows through beneficial ownership transparency.
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