-LBR Boss Tells Liberians
The Director General of the Liberia Business Registry (LBR), Madam Patience Randall, has called on Liberians to desist from what she describes as “fronting” for foreign nationals to illegally obtain business registration in Liberia.
Madam Randall said Liberians who visit the Business Registry claiming ownership of businesses, but are in fact representing foreign nationals are undermining the operations of the LBR and the Government of Liberia’s efforts to empower Liberian-owned businesses.
According to her, the practice directly contradicts the Business Act of 2016, which reserves certain categories of businesses exclusively for Liberians.
She explained that the LBR conducts rigorous screening of foreign nationals seeking to legally register businesses in the country, but expressed alarm that some Liberians have now begun aiding and abetting foreigners to bypass the law. She described the situation as unfortunate and unfair.
“If you are not a Liberian, do the businesses that are reserved for foreigners,” Madam Randall cautioned. “I may just be at the Business Registry, but I issue certificates, and when you come here, I will investigate you thoroughly.”
Madam Randall noted that fronting remains difficult to eliminate, as Liberians often register businesses in their own names and later hand them over to foreign nationals.
“When a Liberian claims ownership of a business but later allows a foreigner to take over after registration, it becomes difficult for us to detect,” she explained.
The LBR Director General further emphasized that, amid the country’s harsh economic conditions, Liberians who aid foreigners to illegally obtain business registration deprive fellow Liberians of opportunities to operate businesses reserved exclusively for them.
“We cannot claim to be fighting for Liberian businesses while Liberians themselves are fronting for foreigners,” she said. “We need to build our own millionaires.”
Meanwhile, Madam Randall encouraged business owners to personally register their businesses rather than relying on third parties.
She disclosed that some business expeditors collect money from individuals with promises to process registrations but end up defrauding them.
She cited several instances in which Liberians living in the diaspora provided money to third-party individuals to register businesses on their behalf, only to be defrauded. According to her, such situations often result in the Liberia Business Registry being accused of corruption and poor customer service delivery.
“I want to appeal to Liberians to come directly to the Registry to handle their own business registration. The process is easy and seamless,” she noted.