Here’s your text formatted in markdown:
Spain Tightens Banking Regulations to Combat Financial Crime
Madrid, Spain - In a bid to strengthen its anti-money laundering and terrorist financing laws, Spain has introduced new regulations that create a central electronic register for beneficial owners. The Register of Beneficial Owners (CRBO) aims to increase transparency in the financial system by collecting and providing information on the ultimate beneficiaries behind companies and other entities.
Key Provisions of the New Regulations
The CRBO is designed to comply with EU anti-money laundering and terrorist financing directives, which require member states to establish a central register of beneficial owners. The new regulations create a unique electronic register that will be accessible 24/7, providing real-time information on the beneficial owners of Spanish companies.
Entities Obliged to Verify or Provide Information
- Spanish legal entities: all types of companies and businesses in Spain
- Entities without legal personality with an effective centre of management or principal business activity in Spain: any entity that operates in Spain but does not have a formal corporate structure
- Entities not managed from any EU country but intending to develop business relations, carry out occasional operations, or acquire real estate in Spain: non-EU entities that operate in Spain for specific purposes
Sources of Information
The CRBO will obtain necessary data through a first data dump from competent registers and databases within nine months after the entry into force of the royal decree. Daily updates will follow, with discrepancies resolved by using the most recent or reliable data.
Access to the Register
Access to the CRBO information is carried out using an electronic model and requires authentication of the applicant’s identity. Access may be denied with justification in cases involving a disproportionate risk for the beneficial owner.
Free and Unrestricted Access:
- Authorities competent for money laundering and terrorist financing: national and European authorities, as well as law enforcement agencies
- Notaries and registrars: officials responsible for registering companies and property in Spain
- Preventive bodies: organizations that prevent financial crimes in Spain
- Entities dealing with European funds: entities that receive or administer EU funding
Access Upon Payment of a Fee and Proof of Legitimate Interest:
- Persons subject to Law 10/2010: individuals who require certification or extracts from the CRBO
- Media and civil society organizers: journalists, bloggers, and organizations focused on anti-money laundering and terrorist financing efforts