Businesses Must Verify Customer Identity and Ownership within a Week

New Regulation to Combat Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing

As of now, businesses operating in Sweden must verify the identity and ownership of their customers within a week. This new regulation is aimed at combating money laundering and terrorist financing.

Verification Requirements

• Registration certificates or corresponding register excerpts must not be older than a week at the verification occasion.
• If an excerpt is obtained from a website providing data on legal persons, it must be clarified that the data comes from the Swedish Companies Registration Office or a corresponding register from another nation’s authority.

Representative Verification

• Businesses must also identify and verify their representatives through the same procedures as for other physically present customers.
• The representative’s authorisation to represent the business must be checked against power of attorney documentation, appointment certificate, or corresponding authorisation documentation.

Beneficial Ownership Investigation

• Businesses must investigate if the customer has one or multiple beneficial owners, defined as a person (or persons) who owns or controls the customer on their own (or together).
• The Swedish Companies Registration Office provides a register of beneficial owners, which can be used as a starting point for investigations.

Consequences of Non-Verification

• If a business cannot verify the identity and ownership of its customers, it may not enter into or maintain a business relation with them.
• Businesses must continuously evaluate their business relations to ensure that customer due diligence is current and adequate to handle the assessed risks for money laundering and terrorist financing.

Quotes from Swedish Companies Registration Office

“We understand the importance of combating money laundering and terrorist financing,” said a spokesperson from the Swedish Companies Registration Office. “These new regulations will help ensure that our businesses are taking the necessary steps to verify the identity and ownership of their customers, which will ultimately help to protect our financial system.”

Regulation Details

The regulation applies to all businesses operating in Sweden and is designed to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing by ensuring that customer due diligence measures are taken seriously.