The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017

Fit and proper test

58.—(1) The registering authority must refuse to register an applicant for registration in a register maintained under regulation 54 as a money service business or as a trust or company service provider, if it is satisfied that—

(a) the applicant;

(b) an officer or manager of the applicant;

(c) a beneficial owner of the applicant; or

(d) where the applicant is a money service business—

(i) any agent used by the applicant for the purposes of its business; or

(ii) any officer, manager or beneficial owner of the agent,

is not a fit and proper person to carry on that business.

(2) Where the FCA has decided to maintain a register of Annex I financial institutions under regulation 55, paragraph (1) applies in relation to those institutions as it applies to a money service business and a trust or company service provider.

(3) A person who has been convicted of a criminal offence listed in Schedule 3 is to be treated as not being a fit and proper person to carry on the business for the purposes of paragraph (1).

(4) If paragraph (3) does not apply, the registering authority must have regard to the following factors in determining the question in paragraph (1)—

(a) whether the applicant has consistently failed to comply with the requirements of—

(i) these Regulations;

(ii) the Money Laundering Regulations 2001(1),

(iii) the Money Laundering Regulations 2003(2), or

(iv) the Money Laundering Regulations 2007(3); and

(b) the risk that the applicant’s business may be used for money laundering or terrorist financing.

(5) Where the applicant is a money service business, the registering authority may, in determining the question in paragraph (1), take account of the opinion of the applicant as to whether any person referred to in paragraph (1)(d) is a fit and proper person to carry on the business.

(6) Where the registering authority is not the supervisory authority of the applicant, the registering authority must consult the supervisory authority and may rely on its opinion as to whether or not the applicant is a fit and proper person to carry on the business referred to in paragraph (1).

(1)

S.I. 2001/3641.

(2)

S.I. 2003/3075.

(3)

S.I. 2007/2157.