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Warned by Central Bank, Cypriot Lenders Launch Review of Corporate Accounts

By Koos Couvée

Banks in Cyprus are reviewing their relationships with corporate clients following a warning by the country’s central bank to “avoid” doing business with certain types of shell companies. In a June 14 letter, Yiagnos Demetriou, acting senior director of supervision for the Central Bank of Cyprus, or CBC, notified the 35 lenders operating on the island that pending guidance on regulations that took effect in April will include a new definition of “shell company” and require banks to sever links to those that cannot demonstrate legitimate business. Banks should identify which clients fall under the new definition, “assess” whether they...

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