Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) Regulations for Agricultural Financial Institutions in Taiwan

Overview

The following regulations outline the key points for anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) measures for agricultural financial institutions in Taiwan. These guidelines aim to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing activities through enhanced due diligence, monitoring, and reporting requirements.

Customer Due Diligence (CDD)

• Agricultural financial institutions must conduct CDD measures consistent with the risks identified.
• Enhanced CDD is required for higher-risk circumstances.
• Institutions must establish policies and procedures for conducting CDD measures.

Simplified Customer Due Diligence

• Lower-risk circumstances allow for simplified CDD measures.
• However, these cannot be used in certain situations, such as when customers are from countries or regions with inadequate AML/CFT regimes.
• Institutions must use a risk-based approach to determine the level of due diligence required.

Name Checking and Screening

• Institutions must establish policies and procedures for checking the names of customers and trading counterparties using a risk-based approach to detect sanctioned individuals or entities.
• This includes screening against lists of known or suspected terrorists, terrorist organizations, and other high-risk parties.

Ongoing Monitoring and Internal Controls

• Agricultural financial institutions must use a database to consolidate customer information and transaction data.
• Institutions must establish internal control procedures for requests and inquiries about customer information.
• These controls should include measures to prevent unauthorized access to customer information.

Suspicious Transaction Reporting (STR)

• Institutions must file STRs with the Investigation Bureau in a format prescribed by the Bureau within two business days of identifying suspicious transactions.
• STRs must include all relevant information, including transaction details and any supporting documentation.