The Hidden Risk in Your Backyard: Succulent Poaching and Financial Crime in South Africa
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South Africa’s prized wild succulents, once a symbol of biodiversity, have become the latest target in the global illegal wildlife trade. The Financial Intelligence Centre published a report on Poaching of South Africa’s Rare and Indigenous Succulents Associated Financial Flows revealing how organised networks are harvesting and smuggling these plants for profit, with links to fraud, tax evasion, and money laundering.
As business accountants, these findings are more than just environmental concern, they raise red flags for illicit financial flows, compliance risks, and gaps in reporting.
What’s Happening?
Since 2019, authorities have seized over 1.5 million illegally harvested succulents, many rare and endangered. These plants are poached from remote areas in the Northern and Western Cape, then sold to overseas collectors, mainly in Asia, Europe, and North America. South Africa’s semi-arid regions (notably the Succulent Karoo) are under extreme pressure due to targeted poaching. Behind this trade are well-coordinated criminal syndicates using false export permits.
Financial Flows & Illicit Economy
Profits from succulent trafficking can be significant: rare species may sell for hundreds to thousands of dollars each.
Money moves via:
Digital payment platforms (PayPal, WeChat Pay)
Cash-based deals
In some cases, cryptocurrency to move profits across borders.
Law enforcement struggles to trace these funds due to limited cross-border cooperation and lack of targeted financial crime investigations.
Why It Matters to Business Accountants
The succulent trade isn’t just a biodiversity issue—it’s a financial crime issue. As gatekeepers of tax compliance, regulatory reporting, and risk management, accountants need to be alert to:
✅ Unusual income or payment patterns in businesses dealing in plants, nursery stock, or exports.
✅ Undeclared income from rare plant sales—often sold online or through informal channels.
✅ Misuse of documentation, especially false claims that poached plants are "nursery-grown".
✅ Transactions involving high-risk countries or platforms, like peer-to-peer payments or anonymous buyers.
These are all potential indicators of money laundering, non-compliance, or even CITES violations.
How You Can Add Value
Whether you're in practice or commerce, your role is pivotal:
Flag and report suspicious transactions under FICA and related compliance frameworks.
Advise clients in the horticulture or export sectors to maintain accurate, auditable records.
Support ethical sourcing and help clients align with environmental and international trade laws.
Encourage transparency when dealing with high-value or rare stock assets.
In Conclusion
The succulent poaching crisis is a reminder that financial crime isn’t always about cash or gold—it can involve natural assets too. As the pressure mounts on regulators to track environmental crime, accountants will be expected to understand and respond to these emerging threats.
The more we understand how biodiversity crimes overlap with illicit finance, the better equipped we are to protect both our clients and our country’s natural heritage.
