Robert Troy
Ceist:167. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Finance the remit his Department has with the newly established Register of Beneficial Ownership and the requirements of S.I. No.110 of 2019. [48932/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 26 November 2019
Ceisteanna (167)
Freagraí scríofa
Statutory Instrument 110 of 2019, the European Union (Anti-Money Laundering: Beneficial Ownership of Corporate Entities) Regulations 2019, was signed into law on 22 March 2019. These Regulations transpose Article 30 of the Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive and make legislative provision for the obligation that was first established in 2016, that corporate entities must obtain and hold information on their beneficial ownership – that is, the people who ultimately own or control the company.
The Regulations also provide for the establishment of a central register of beneficial ownership information. This central register is operated under the aegis of the Companies Registration Office and began accepting filings on 29 July 2019.
The purpose of the Regulations is to prevent the use of corporate entities as vehicles for money laundering or terrorist financing and to provide competent authorities with access to information on the true ownership and control of corporate entities. Therefore, the obligation to file information with the central register applies to all companies formed under the Companies Act and societies registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Acts, with the exception of companies listed on regulated markets that are subject to disclosure requirements consistent with European Union law or subject to equivalent international standards which ensure adequate transparency of ownership information.
The remit of the Department of Finance was to develop the necessary Regulations in cooperation with the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation as part of the measures taken to transpose the Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive. While the relevant legislation was signed by myself as Minister for Finance, the register is maintained by a “Registrar of Beneficial Ownership of Companies and Industrial and Provident Societies”, as provided for under Regulation 18 of SI 110/2019, who has been appointed by the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation.