With the arrival of the 4th Money Laundering Directive, which came into force on 26th June 2017, has also come many changes with the aim of making the UK a more hostile place for money launderers and terrorist financers. Due to the regulations now in force, simplified client due diligence is no longer applicable in most circumstances. Firms are now obliged by Regulation 35 to have appropriate risk-management systems and procedures in place to identify when their customer (or the beneficial owner of a customer) is a Politically Exposed Person (PEP) and to manage the enhanced risks arising from having a relationship with that customer. Business relationships with family members and known close associates of a PEP are also subject to greater scrutiny.
Online E-Verification allows you to check an individual for potential PEP/Sanctions status and Monitoring tools allow you to continually be kept up-to-date on any changes to adverse information that potentially relates to your client.
But how do you know that a PEP/Sanctions match relates to your client?
For example, what if your client has a popular name like John Smith? Your online e-verification system will alert you to potential PEPS/Sanctions but how can you be sure, with the numerous results that would hypothetically appear with a popular name, which of those alerts do or do not apply to your John Smith?
This is where Jordans stand-alone Monitoring system can help you to gather evidence that will definitively prove if the alert relates to your client. By providing access to additional information from 30,000 sources of data that is not publicly available, you not only have the flexibility to choose who you monitor but also the confidence that you're referencing the correct information.
Some examples of the data that you would have access to from a Stand-Alone Global Monitoring system include:
- UK Credit Header data
- International Passport No./EU Identity Card No. check
- Enhanced Politically Exposed Persons check
- UK bank account validation & verification
With the EU currently working on their 5th Money Laundering Directive, the 2017 Regulations may therefore just be the beginning of an ever more stringent AML regime. It is therefore arguably more important than ever to find a system that offers you thorough checks and helps you to make informed business decisions. If you would like to talk further about your business's ID & AML check requirements, you can contact us on 0117 918 1265.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.