The new EU AML / CFT package has been published in the Official Journal.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1620: Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA)
This Regulation will apply from 1 July 2025 (the 'go live' date for AMLA).
Certain articles will apply earlier (from 26 June 2024) to enable set-up work to begin. These allow AMLA to develop technical standards for the Commission's review, and provide guidelines, recommendations, opinions and technical advice; deal with the composition and functions of AMLA's General Board and Executive Board; deal with the appointment and functions of AMLA's Chair; allow for a Headquarters Agreement to be concluded between AMLA and Germany; and confirm that the Commission will be responsible for AMLA's establishment and operation until 31 December 2025.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1624: Single Rulebook
The new AML / CFT framework is moving from a directive-led framework (which led to diverging approaches between EU Member States) to a regulation-led framework (which will be directly effective in each EU Member State) – the bulk of the framework is set out in this 'single rulebook' Regulation. It will apply from 10 July 2027, save for the provisions which bring football agents and (in respect of certain transactions) professional football clubs into scope as obliged entities – those provisions will apply from 10 July 2029.
We will publish more detailed analysis of the beneficial ownership-related provisions of the 'single rulebook' Regulation shortly. For the time being it is important to note that the beneficial ownership threshold will stay at 25%. If a Member State identifies categories of corporates that are exposed to higher ML/TF risks, the Commission must assess (by 10 July 2029) whether a lower beneficial ownership threshold is appropriate for those corporates. Any such lower threshold would be set by the Commission in delegated acts (generally no more than 15%, but depending on the risks involved, it could be between 15% and 25%).
Directive (EU) 2024/1640: AML / CFT Directive
The AML / CFT Directive deals with matters where local law regulations will be needed e.g. the management of the beneficial ownership framework, the management of the framework relating to bank account registries, the requirement for a single access point to information on real estate, the responsibilities of Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs), the potential to bring additional sectors into the scope of the 'single rulebook', carrying out national risk assessments, and the role of competent authorities.
Member States must transpose this by 10 July 2027 (at which stage the Fourth Money Laundering Directive as amended by the Fifth Money Laundering Directive (MLD4) will be repealed).
However, Article 74 must be transposed by 10 July 2025 – it amends MLD4 regarding access to the central registers of beneficial ownership of corporates and trusts, confirming that in each case that information must be accessible to:
- competent authorities and FIUs (without restriction)
- obliged entities (where required for customer DD purposes)
- those that can demonstrate a legitimate interest in accessing that information (they will be able to access a more limited sub-set of the information stored on the relevant register)
Related articles must be transposed by 10 July 2026.
The outlier in terms of transposition is the new requirement regarding a single access point to real estate information – the transposition date for that requirement is 10 July 2029.
Directive (EU) 2024/1654: Centralised Bank Account Registries
The AML /CFT Directive will give FIUs access to the single access point for information from centralised bank account registries – this additional Directive will widen that access to law enforcement authorities in EU Member States. Transposition will be phased in between 10 July 2027 and 10 July 2029.
This article contains a general summary of developments and is not a complete or definitive statement of the law. Specific legal advice should be obtained where appropriate.