Brokers, dealers told to register with AMLC

THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reminding its covered persons that have not registered with the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) to start doing so.

In a notice posted on its website, the country’s corporate regulator told covered persons that are supervised or regulated by the SEC to sign up with AMLC through its online registration system.

Compliance officers of the covered persons are also told to update their user account information in the AMLC system every two years.

The SEC said among the covered persons who must comply with the requirement are securities dealers, brokers, salesmen, investment houses and other similar persons managing securities or rendering services as investment agent, advisor or consultant.

Also included are mutual funds, close-end investment companies, common trust funds and similar persons.

Entities dealing with currency, commodities or financial derivatives based on valuable objects, cash substitutes and other similar monetary instruments or property are likewise part of the covered persons.

The SEC issued last year its antimoney laundering module, which aims to guide covered persons in abiding by the Anti-Money Laundering Act, its revised implementing rules and regulations, the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force and other regulatory issuances of the AMLC and the SEC.

The AMLC was formed through the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001, tasked to ensure the confidentiality of bank accounts to prohibit any instance of money laundering in the country.

The council is formed by the governor of the central bank, the commissioner of the Insurance Commission and the chairman of the SEC. —