U.S. Anti-Money-Laundering Chief Calls for Beneficial Ownership Registry
- Source: Wall Street Journal
Treliant Takeaway:
Treliant commends Kenneth Blanco, the head of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, for his commitment to improving the U.S.’s anti-money-laundering regime through his call for the creation of a beneficial ownership registry for companies incorporated in the U.S.
Treliant has extensive experience with helping financial institutions across the world to design, implement, and assess programs to comply with regulatory requirements, including identifying and conducting due diligence on ultimate beneficial owners.
Article Highlights:
There is positive movement on the creation of a registry about who owns and controls businesses incorporated in the U.S.
“A bill that would create a registry passed in the House of Representatives in October. Similar legislation has been introduced in the Senate, where Republican Mike Crapo of Idaho, the chairman of the Banking Committee, has indicated he supports more shell-company disclosure.”
“Changes to the U.S.’s anti-money-laundering regime also have received support from the White House, which in October released a statement commending the passage of the House bill.”
“Criminals thrive when they have somewhere to hide,” said Mr. Blanco. “The next step is collecting beneficial ownership information when corporations are formed.”
Opponents to the legislation are small-business owners who contend that submitting beneficial ownership information will be overly burdensome to small businesses. Treliant will continue to monitor the legislation as it moves through the U.S. legislature.