B. Beneficial Owner
| No: 18318/486 | Date(g): 17/11/2019 | Date(h): 20/3/1441 | Status: In-Force |
| To implement the risk-based approach, the financial institution shall be certain of the identity of the beneficial owner or any person controlling the business relationship. The beneficial owner may not be a legal person, but rather a natural person who owns or controls the legal person directly or indirectly. | ||
| Concealing ownership information related to business and operations is one of the methods used for ML/TF. Therefore, collecting the necessary information and verifying the identity of the beneficial owner or anyone controlling the business relationship is important in combating ML/TF. | ||
| Article (7/3) of the Implementing Regulations of the Anti-Money Laundering Law and Article (17) of the Implementing Regulations of the Law on Combating Terrorism Crimes and Financing stipulate the measures that must be taken by the financial institution to identify and know the beneficial owner. | ||
3.17 | The financial institution shall know the identity of the beneficial owner and take sufficient and appropriate measures to verify that identity, using documents, data or information from an authenticated and independent source. In order to verify the beneficial owner’s identity, the financial institution shall obtain and review all necessary details and information, provided that the due diligence measures taken by the financial institution shall be consistent with the degree and level of risk. | |
| 3.18 | The financial institution shall know the identity of the natural person who owns or controls (25%) or more of the legal person’s shares and take sufficient and reasonable measures to verify that identity, taking into account that a natural person who controls (25%) of the shares may not necessarily be the beneficial owner. In this case or when there is no natural person who owns or controls (25%) or more of the legal person’s ownership, or if there is suspicion that the owner of the controlling share is not the beneficial owner, the financial institution may take the following preventive measures: | |
| a) | Identifying the natural persons who occupy senior management positions with the legal person, so that the financial institution becomes sufficiently satisfied that these persons control the legal person. | |
| b) | Identifying the owners who control less than (25%) of the shares if it becomes clear to the financial institution that these owners are the beneficial owners or controlling the legal person. | |
| c) | Identifying the natural person who holds the position of senior management officer. | |
| d) | Identifying the high-risk customer and taking preventive measures, including enhanced due diligence measures and continuous monitoring of the customer. | |
| e) | Keeping records of the measures and procedures taken by the financial institution in addition to the reasons for suspecting that the owner of the controlling share is not the beneficial owner. | |
| 3.19 | The financial institution shall not rely primarily on the written statement of a customer to identify the beneficial owner; it shall take reasonable and adequate measures to verify the beneficial owner by understanding the ownership and control structure of the legal person. In order to understand that structure, the financial institution can refer to any of the following documents: | |
| a) | The data of joint stock companies listed on the Capital market. | |
| b) | The stockholders register. | |
| c) | The memorandum of association. | |
| d) | Minutes of board meetings. | |
| e) | The company’s commercial register. | |
| f) | The articles of association. | |
| 3.20 | The financial institution shall maintain records and documents related to the identification and verification of the beneficial owner as mentioned in Paragraph (6.1) of the Record Keeping Section. | |
| 3.21 | If the customer of the financial institution is an individual, it shall ensure that the business relationship with that customer is used for the benefit of the individual whose name is registered and for the purposes specified (and determine whether the customer is acting in his own interest). In the event that there is a suspicion that the customer is acting in the interest of others, the financial institution must specify the capacity in which the customer, or anyone acting on his behalf, acts. The beneficial owner is then identified to the satisfaction of the financial institution. It shall also ensure that any person claiming to act on behalf of a customer is authorized and shall identify and verify that person's identity. | |