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Financial Services Law Insights and Observations

FinCEN announces upcoming rulemaking on beneficial ownership reporting requirements

Financial Crimes Agency Rule-Making & Guidance FinCEN Of Interest to Non-US Persons Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 Bank Secrecy Act Anti-Money Laundering Beneficial Ownership

Financial Crimes

On March 22, FinCEN Director Kenneth A. Blanco spoke at the Florida International Bankers Association AML Compliance Conference,  and discussed the upcoming advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) concerning new beneficial ownership reporting requirements of the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2021 (AML Act). As previously covered by InfoBytes, the AML Act was enacted in January as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, and made significant changes to BSA and AML laws. Included within the AML Act is the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), which defines a beneficial owner as an entity or individual “who, directly or indirectly, through any contract, arrangement, understanding, relationship, or otherwise. . .exercises substantial control over the entity” or “owns or controls not less than 25 percent of the ownership interests of the entity,” with limited exceptions. Blanco did not provide a timeline for when the ANPRM would be issued, but emphasized that implementing the AML Act is FinCEN’s “number one priority.” Blanco also noted, among other things, that FinCEN is taking steps to develop a secure database to house collected beneficial ownership information, and is currently in the process of developing the use and confidentiality protocols that will control access to the database.