Into the light: Benchmarking beneficial ownership transparency frameworks across MENA

Anonymous companies and opaque ownership structures continue to enable corruption and illicit financial flows across the Middle East and North Africa. They make it easy to hide conflicts of interest, steer public contracts to insiders and siphon public wealth into private hands.

In line with global trends, countries across the region have begun reforming their beneficial ownership transparency frameworks to curb the misuse of companies and legal arrangements for corruption, money laundering and tax evasion.

Transparency International has assessed progress eight countries in the region, benchmarking countries against ten pillars that define an effective beneficial ownership transparency regime. These pillars examine crucial components – from the legal definition of beneficial ownership and data collection requirements to risk assessments, verification and access to information.

Our findings show that momentum is growing, but progress remains uneven. Most countries have adopted solid definitions and obligations for private-sector intermediaries. Yet weaknesses in risk assessment, record-keeping, and verification undermine effectiveness. Public access also remains limited: only a few jurisdictions have live beneficial ownership registers, and even fewer make them open to public scrutiny.

The report highlights where frameworks are strongest, where gaps persist, and what reforms are needed to make beneficial ownership transparency a practical tool for preventing and detecting corruption.