Directive (EU) 2024/1640 on the mechanisms to be put in place by Member States for the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing

Ce que fait l'acte

to establish a coordinated and coherent mechanism on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing and repealing Directive (EU) 2015/849. PROPOSED ACT: Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council. ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the European Parliament decides in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure and on an equal footing with the Council. BACKGROUND: money laundering and terrorist financing pose a serious threat to the integrity of the EU economy and financial system and the security of its citizens. Europol estimated that around 1% of the EU’s annual Gross Domestic Product is ‘detected as being involved in suspect financial activity’. The fight against money laundering and terrorist financing is vital for financial stability and security in Europe. The Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs jointly adopted the report by Luděk NIEDERMAYER (EPP, CZ) and Paul TANG (S&D, NL) on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mechanisms to be put in place by the Member States for the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing and repealing Directive (EU) 2015/849. The committee responsible recommended that the European Parliament's position adopted at first reading under the ordinary legislative procedure should amend the proposal as follows: Given that land and real estate is an attractive commodity for criminals to launder the proceeds of their illicit activities, the amended text suggested that the Directive should also lay down rules concerning access to information on beneficial ownership, bank accounts, land or real estate registers and relevant goods. Regarding real estate, Member States should set-up registers or electronic data retrieval systems to effectively put an end to real estate or land as a means to launder money. It is important that Member States provide FIUs and competent authorities with access to information through a single access point in each Member State, which allows the identification in a timely manner of natural or legal person owning land and real estate. Moreover, Member States should ensure that estate agents develop or have in place training programmes for professionals. The nature and extent of training should be tailored to the scale and complexity of the business and be appropriate to the level of the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing faced by the obliged entity. Each Member State should designate an authority or establish a mechanism to coordinate the national response to the risks set out in the risk assessment. The identity of this authority or the description of the mechanism should be notified to the Commission, the anti-money laundering authority (AMLA), Europol and the other Member States. Central registers of beneficial ownership information are crucial in combating the misuse of legal entities. Therefore, Member States should ensure that beneficial ownership information of legal entities incorporated outside the Union or of…