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South African organizations recorded the highest rate of reported economic crimes in the world over the last two year. This report is contained in the Global Economic Crime Survey 2016 published on Wednesday by PwC, a global auditing and consulting firm.

According to the PwC survey, 69 percent of South African organizations have been hit by various economic crimes in the last two years. Some of the most pervasive economic crimes identified by the PwC report include: asset misappropriation, cybercrime, bribery and corruption, procurement fraud, accounting fraud, human resources fraud, money laundering, intellectual property infringement, insider trading, tax fraud, mortgage fraud, among others.

“When compared to the global statistic of 36 per cent, we are faced with the stark reality that economic crime is at a pandemic level in South Africa. No sector or region is immune from economic crime,” said Louis Strydom, PwC Africa’s Forensic Services Leader.

Asset misappropriation remained the most prevalent economic crime in South Africa as reported by 68 percent of South African respondents. Procurement fraud was reported by 41 percent of respondents while 37 percent reported bribery and corruption. Cybercrime rose two place since 2014 to fourth place, according to 32 percent of respondents, on par with the global average.

The impact of economic crimes has resulted in substantial losses among South African businesses. A fifth of respondents reported that economic crimes cost them between $100,000 and $1 million. One in four respondents reported economic crime losses of over $1 million.

The PwC reported surveyed 6,337 participants in 115 countries. Other countries in Africa with high rates of economic crimes include Kenya (61 percent) and Zambia (61 percent). In the Middle East, economic crimes reported by organizations in Saudi Arabia doubled from 11 percent in 2014 to 24 percent in 2016. In Western Europe, France recorded 68 percent, followed by the United Kingdom at 55 percent.