The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has introduced an Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Countering Proliferation Financing of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Financial Institutions) Regulations, 2022, (CBN AML/CFT/CPF Regulations).
It was gathered that the new regulations were introduced to check abuses in the financial system.
The apex bank stated that the objective of the guidance was to assist financial institutions in identifying and verifying the Beneficial Owners (BO) of legal persons and legal arrangements in line with extant anti-money laundering laws and regulations.
The CBN, in a circular dated Thursday, January 12, 2023, and directed to all banks and Other Financial Institutions (OFIs), which was signed by the bank’s Director, Financial Policy and Regulations Department, Chibuzor Efobi, said though the guidance was not exhaustive and would be amended as necessary, it, however, applies to financial institutions under the regulatory purview of the central bank.
The CBN defined BO as the “natural person(s) who ultimately owns or controls a customer and/or the natural person on whose behalf a transaction is being conducted. It also includes those persons who exercise ultimate effective control over a legal person or legal arrangement.”
It stated that in line with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), consideration must be given to the “natural person(s) who have ultimate (actual) ownership and control over the corporate vehicle, not necessarily the legal owner, or the person(s) entitled on paper to do so, but natural person(s) who exert effective control over the corporate vehicle, or on whose behalf the transaction is being conducted”.
