The latest circular from the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission to entities that it regulates requests their participation in a public consultation on draft guidelines setting out payment service providers’ obligations regarding detection and prevention of the abuse of funds transfers for terrorist financing and money laundering purposes. The consultation is being undertaken jointly by the European Banking Authority, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and the European Securities and Markets Authority on guidelines drafted in accordance with Article 25 of Regulation (EU) 2015/847 (the Funds Transfer Regulation), which requires these bodies to issue guidelines to competent authorities and payment service providers on the measures required to comply with the Regulation.
The draft guidelines set out what intermediary payment service providers and the payment service providers of the payee should do to detect whether information on the payer or the payee is deficient, and what payment service providers should do to manage a transfer of funds that lacks the required information. They are part of the supervisory authorities’ wider work on fostering a common approach to combating money laundering and terrorist financing and promoting a common understanding of payment service providers’ obligations in this area. This is viewed as essential to ensure the consistent application of relevant legislation, which not only strengthens the anti-money laundering and terrorist financing regime, but also is a prerequisite for the smooth and efficient functioning of payment systems.
The consultation period is open until 5 June 2017.
