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We\u2019ve already written about it twice. In 2016, we announced in the article Laying it all out in the UBO register<\/a> that the UBO register was due to be introduced in 2017. And in 2017, we reported to you in the article Update on the UBO Register<\/a> that the bill had been put out for public consultation online. We can now inform you that the UBO register is still not in place and that it will not be introduced in 2018 either.<\/p>\n The basis for the UBO register is the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, which the European Union adopted in 2015. Under this Directive, Member States are required to establish a register setting out who the ultimate beneficial owner(s) of companies and other legal entities are. These beneficial owners are referred to in English as Ultimate Beneficial Owner<\/em>, abbreviated as UBO<\/em>.<\/p>\n The directive was due to be transposed into national law by Member States by 26 June 2017 at the latest. So far, only Germany, Sweden, Belgium and Denmark have succeeded in doing so. In the Netherlands, the bill to implement the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive is currently before the Upper House<\/a>. However, this bill does not include the UBO register.<\/p>\n The implementation of that register will be set out in a separate bill. A version of this Implementation Act was also submitted in 2017 internet consultation<\/a> submitted. Many objections were raised against this version. For the most part, these related to the protection of the UBOs\u2019 privacy. The legislation is intended to facilitate the tracing of criminal money flows. But, as is often the case, it seems that here too the innocent are set to suffer alongside the guilty.<\/p>\nUBO register<\/h4>\n
Privacy<\/h4>\n