The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has proposed that firms will need to make annual report of their financial crime suspicions, including suspicions involving crypto-assets.
As it currently stands, only firms subject to FCA supervision under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations of 2017, which transposed the EU Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive (4AMLD) into UK law, have to report their suspicions annually to the FCA.
However, the FCA has issued a consultation paper with the thoughts of extending this activity to more firms by including any regulated activities that could potentially pose higher money laundering risks.
This would include:
- authorised firms that hold client money or assets
- entities that advice on investments as well as those that manage investments
- crypto-asset exchange providers and custodian wallet providers
- most payment and electronic money institutions
- multilateral or organised trading facilities
Those firms at a higher risk of money laundering will have to supply the information. Lower risk firms who’s revenue is less than £5m are exempt.
Responses to the consultation may be submitted until 23 November 2020, and the FCA plans to issue the final rules and publish a policy statement in the first quarter of 2021.
