A/HRC/43/66 41. By adhering to the United Nations Convention against Corruption, States incur a binding obligation to fight corruption and to remedy the pernicious consequences of the transfer of illicit funds. Given that the ultimate repatriation of funds has become a challenging and long drawn out process, a middle ground should be sought. Some form of compensation to countries of origin must be transparently devised and accepted to make the funds productive for the benefit of the people in the countries of origin so that they may achieve nationally determined priorities. The possibility of utilizing illicit funds gives a glimmer of hope to developing countries that have suffered from the plundering of their economies. 42. Article 31 (3) of the United Nations Convention against Corruption requires States parties to adopt legislative and other measures to regulate the administration by the competent authorities of frozen, seized or confiscated property covered by the Convention. In 2019, the Open-ended Intergovernmental Working Group on Asset Recovery of the Conference of the States Parties to the Convention produced revised draft non-binding guidelines on the management of such assets (CAC/COSP/WG.2/2019/3), guideline 12 of which reads as follows: Regardless of the institutional arrangements in place for asset management, States may wish to consider equipping relevant institutions with adequate skills and capacities and empowering them to enter into the necessary agreements or arrangements, including, as appropriate, with other public bodies or external contractors, as required for their effective functioning. 43. Those capacities would enable institutions set up such entities as an asset recovery unit to invest those assets in safe securities like government bonds. However, no mention is made as to whether the assets or the returns would be used to the benefit of countries of origin (see CAC/COSP/WG.2/2019/3). 44. Under the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative, the global financial sector is called upon to mobilize private sector finance for sustainable development to serve people and the planet, while delivering positive impacts. Banks have committed to the ambitions set out on the principles for responsible banking, principle 1 of which is to align their business strategies to be consistent with and contribute to individuals’ needs and society’s goals, as expressed in the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement on climate change and relevant national and regional frameworks. 11 45. In that context, banks in countries of destination that accept tainted funds from countries of origin should commit themselves to releasing those funds, if so required by their own States, for investment to benefit the country of origin pending their repatriation. Although such a procedure may meet with certain obstacles, banks would be failing in their duty, given that they may not have abided by the requirement to “know your client” when accepting deposits from illicit sources in the first place. 46. An additional burden falls upon the financial regulatory authorities of banks and other financial intermediaries in countries of destination in that they must control banks in terms of good governance. The Independent Expert on the effects of foreign debt and other related international financial obligations of States on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights, made such a recommendation following his visit to Switzerland in 2017 (see A/HRC/37/54/Add.3). 47. The possibility exists therefore of utilizing non-repatriated illicit funds in the countries of destination through monetization and/or the establishment of investment funds for the benefit of the countries of origin to support them in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The countries of destination, which are developed countries in most cases, have a duty in that respect and cannot continue to benefit from the spoils of the acts of unscrupulous individuals who entrust those funds to banks in countries of destination, in violation of the economic and social rights of the people of the countries of origin, to whom they rightfully belong. 11 See www.unepfi.org/banking/bankingprinciples/. 9