European Parliament Adopts the EU Anti-Money Laundering Package

The sixth directive passed with 513 votes in favour, 25 against and 33 abstentions; the single rulebook regulation with 479 in favour, 61 against and 32 abstentions; and the regulation establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA) with 482 in favour, 47 against and 38 abstentions.

What the rules require

People with a legitimate interest, including journalists, media professionals, civil society organisations, competent authorities and supervisory bodies, will have immediate, unfiltered, direct and free access to beneficial ownership information held in national registers, which will be interconnected at EU level and include data going back at least five years. Financial Intelligence Units gain more powers to analyse and detect money laundering and terrorist financing and to suspend suspicious transactions.

Obliged entities, such as banks, asset and crypto-asset managers and real and virtual estate agents, face enhanced due diligence and customer identity checks and must report suspicious activity. The package introduces enhanced vigilance for individuals with total wealth of at least €50 million, excluding their main residence, and an EU-wide limit of €10,000 on cash payments, except between private individuals in a non-professional context. From 2029, top-tier professional football clubs involved in high-value transactions with investors, sponsors and advertisers, or in player transfers, will also have to verify customers' identities, monitor transactions and report suspicions.

The new authority

AMLA will be based in Frankfurt, the city chosen by the Parliament and Council in a joint vote in February. It will directly supervise the riskiest financial entities, intervene in cases of supervisory failure, act as a central hub for national supervisors and mediate disputes between them. It will also supervise the implementation of targeted financial sanctions.

Who is affected and what happens next

Banks, asset and crypto-asset managers, estate agents and top-tier professional football clubs will all need to prepare for tighter and more harmonised customer due diligence. Businesses that accept large cash payments should plan for the €10,000 limit, and groups with complex ownership structures should expect more scrutiny of beneficial ownership data. Once the Council adopts the texts and they are published, the measures will apply according to the timetables set in the final texts, and AMLA will need to be set up and staffed before it takes on direct supervision.

Sources

• European Parliament: New EU rules to combat money-laundering adopted
• European Parliament: Frankfurt will be the home of the EU Anti-Money Laundering Authority