What is AML 4th Directive ?

What is 4th AML Directive and how it affect my company / organization ?

DIRECTIVE (EU) 2015/849 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 20 May 2015 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing is pointing that flows of illicit money can damage the integrity, stability and reputation of the financial sector, and threaten the internal market of the Union as well as international development. Money laundering, terrorism financing and organized crime remain significant problems which should be addressed at Union level. In addition to further developing the criminal law approach at Union level, targeted and proportionate prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering and terrorist financing is indispensable and can produce complementary results.

Some main points of the directive texts:

CUSTOMER DUE DILIGENCE

  • Member States shall prohibit their credit institutions and financial institutions from keeping anonymous accounts or anonymous passbooks
  • Member States shall ensure that obliged entities apply customer due diligence measures in the following circumstances
    • when establishing a business relationship (on-boarding)
    • when carrying out an occasional transaction that amounts to EUR 15 000 or more, whether that transaction is carried out in a single operation or in several operations which appear to be linked
    • in the case of persons trading in goods, when carrying out occasional transactions in cash amounting to EUR 10 000 or more, whether the transaction is carried out in a single operation or in several operations which appear to be linked;
    • when there is a suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing, regardless of any derogation, exemption or threshold;

BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP INFORMATION

  • Identification and verification of beneficial owners should, where relevant, extend to legal entities that own other legal entities, and obliged entities should look for the natural person(s) who ultimately exercises control through ownership or through other means of the legal entity that is the customer
  • The need for accurate and up-to-date information on the beneficial owner is a key factor in tracing criminals who might otherwise hide their identity behind a corporate structure. Member States should therefore ensure that entities incorporated within their territory in accordance with national law obtain and hold adequate, accurate and current information on their beneficial ownership, in addition to basic information such as the company name and address and proof of incorporation and legal ownership
  • This Directive should also apply to activities of obliged entities which are performed on the internet

REPORTING OBLIGATIONS

Full – Official text of the 4th AML Directive could be found here