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Variances in data-protection rules from country to country are impeding EU investigations of politicos with secret offshore holdings as documented by the Panama Papers, European lawmakers heard Thursday.
U.K. elections in May aren't likely to spare British territories from implementing new corporate transparency measures, but the results could determine how soon and how far those steps are taken.
Factions within the European Union reached a compromise Tuesday on the terms of the long-awaited Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, including provisions to create central registers on the ultimate beneficial owners of corporate and other legal entities, as well as trusts in every member state.
On the eve of key behind-the-scenes talks on the Fourth European Union Anti-Money Laundering Directive, the rift over proposals for the public register of trusts has widened between the United Kingdom and Europe.
Despite an ongoing push for greater financial transparency, few EU nations have signaled a willingness to require corporations and trusts to identify their owners, a nongovernmental group said in a report.
The U.K. is weighing amendments to its plan for a public registry of corporate owners that would allow individuals who control the firms to better protect their personal data.
A global anti-money laundering group Monday outlined how countries should identify corporate owners in an effort to stop criminals from hiding behind shell companies and other legal entities.
The European Union Tuesday further restricted Russia's access to the continent's financial markets and energy technology industry and promised targeted sanctions against individuals and entities on Wednesday.
Intergovernmental plans to better identify corporate owners will do little to thwart financial crooks, even at great cost to banks and governments, according to an academic report on offshore financial flows.
British parliamentarians advanced a measure Wednesday that would create the country's first registry of corporate owners as part of a larger effort to shine light on opaque shell companies.
As European Union leaders negotiate a final version of the bloc's latest anti-money laundering directive, questions remain on how its proponents will overcome legal and political hurdles to its implementation.
Even with the parliamentary passage of the EU's anti-money laundering directive last month, tough debates lie ahead for the economic bloc's plans to better identify financial criminals, say observers.
The expected approval of amendments to the EU's proposed Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive will shine greater light on tax evaders and financial criminals hiding behind shell companies and trusts, according to Judith Sargentini, a Dutch member of the European Parliament.
European parliamentary members are set to require countries to publish registries naming the beneficial owners of privately-held corporations and trusts as part of a broad overhaul to the EU's anti-money laundering rules.
U.S. Treasury Department officials are weighing whether to exempt trusts and offer more flexibility on verification requirements in an upcoming proposal that would impose data collection duties on corporate accounts held at banks.
Compliance with beneficial ownership standards will be one of the top priorities for Financial Action Task Force examiners during the group's next round of jurisdictional reviews, a U.S. official said Tuesday.
The Financial Action Task Force is weighing whether to ask jurisdictions to loosen their privacy laws and require companies to retain data on their owners, among other changes to the group's standards.
