On March 10, 2023, the FATF issued the updated Guidance on Beneficial Ownership of Legal Persons will help countries implement the revised requirements of Recommendation 24. In March 2022, the FATF adopted amendments to Recommendation 24, or the Beneficial Ownership of Legal Persons, and its Interpretive Note which require countries to prevent the misuse of legal persons for money laundering or terrorist financing and to ensure that there is adequate, accurate and up-to-date information on the beneficial ownership and control of legal persons.
The amendments to the Recommendation 24 were aimed at strengthening the international standards on beneficial ownership of legal persons, to ensure greater transparency about the ultimate ownership and control of legal persons and to mitigate the risks of their misuse. The revisions to Recommendation 24 requires countries to follow a risk-based approach and consider the risks of legal persons in their countries.
The Guidance on Beneficial Ownership of Legal Persons was also updated to assist countries in the implementation of the revised Recommendation 24. The updated guidance includes assessing and mitigating the money laundering and terrorist financing risks associated with foreign companies to which their countries are exposed. According to the FATF, the revised guidance is the result of several months of intense consultation with external stakeholders and the private sector to ensure that the guidance is clear and addresses the questions that stakeholders in the public and private sectors may have. The guidance also aims to facilitate the implementation of the necessary measures so that shell companies can no longer be a safe haven for illicit proceeds with links to crime or terrorism.
The FATF’s updates regarding Beneficial Ownership can be found here.