Banking & Fintech / 08.10.2024

Financial Security in bureaux de change: NBP Issues New AML/CTF Guidelines

On 7 October 2024, the National Bank of Poland (NBP) published on its website guidelines on the development of an internal Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing (AML/CTF) procedure for money exchange activities.

Practical approach to the AML/CTF procedure

The NBP emphasizes that the AML/CTF procedure must be practical. This means that each stage of the procedure should clearly define: who undertakes a given activity, towards whom, when and how. The procedure should include all mandatory points in accordance with Article 50 of the AML Act.

The NBP emphasizes that each stage of the procedure should clearly define: who undertakes a given activity, towards whom, when and how.

How to assess risk?

In terms of risk assessment, the NBP recommends clarifying:

The actions taken by the cashier in the process of risk assessment related to business relationships or occasional transactions, including rules for collecting and documenting information about the customer using financial security measures, own sources, or publicly available information;
Procedures for assigning risk levels to clients, including specifying the different risk levels and indicating the circumstances that may lead to changes in the risk assessment.

Financial security measures in AML/CTF – what should be included in the procedure?

The NBP indicates that the AML/CTF procedure must clarify:

Who of the employees is obliged to apply financial security measures;
The catalogue of security measures to be applied, their intensity, and the way they are applied depending on the risk level assigned to the customer or the occasional transaction;
Documents necessary for identification and verification of the customer, beneficial owner, and the person authorized to act on behalf of the client, including external databases used to verify established data (e.g. KRS, CEIDG, REGON database);
Obligation to establish the source of the customer’s assets and the origin of the funds, particularly for clients assigned a high-risk level;
The individual responsible for verifying and supervising the proper implementation of the above activities.

The NBP requires cantors to document transactions above 15,000 euros in detail and to report suspicious transactions to the GIIF.

When and where to report transactions to the GIIF?

The NBP also draws attention to the details regarding the reporting of transactions to the General Inspector of Financial Information (GIIF). The AML/CTF procedure should include:

A detailed description of the process for transactions exceeding €15,000 or those suspected of being connected to money laundering or terrorist financing:
- How to identify transactions that require reporting;
- Who submits information to the GIIF and when;
- The format for transmitting information, e.g. using a qualified electronic signature;
- How the notification is confirmed – e.g. by obtaining an official acknowledgement of receipt;
- Who verifies and supervises the correct execution of these actions.
Procedure for suspicious transactions as per Articles 74, 86, and 90 of the AML Act:
- Circumstances indicating possible money laundering or terrorist financing, such as lack of economic justification for the transaction, deliberate fragmentation by the customer to avoid exceeding the €15,000 threshold;
- Who and when drafts the notification and supervises its execution;
- How to submit notifications, including the use of a qualified electronic signature, and how to obtain confirmation, e.g. by printing the official acknowledgment of receipt;
- Who verifies and supervises the proper execution of these actions.