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Proposed 2023 AML Changes: Mortgage Lenders and Armoured Car Services

Background

February seems to be the month for proposed legislative changes.

On February 18, 2023, draft amendments to the regulations under the Proceeds of Crime Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA), and a net-new draft regulation, were published in the Canada Gazette. If you’re the type that likes to read original legislative text, you can find it here. We (thanks Rodney) also created a redlined version of the regulations, with new content showing as tracked changes, which can be found here.

These changes are meant to renew and improve Canada’s anti-money laundering (AML) and Counter Terrorist Financing (CTF) regime, adapting to new money laundering (ML) and terrorist financing (TF) risk. One of the most significant changes, in our opinion, is the introduction of two new regulated entity types, mortgage lenders and armoured car companies.

Currently, mortgages issued by financial entities are captured under the PCMLTFA but these amendments would make all entities involved in the mortgage lending process (brokers responsible for mortgage origination, lenders responsible for underwriting the loan, and administrators responsible for servicing the loan) reporting entities. The intent here is to level the playing field between regulated and unregulated mortgage lenders, and to deter misuse of the sector for illicit activities.

While the activity of transportation is not currently supervised for AML purposes per se, armoured car carriers provide services largely to regulated entities. Given the flow of funds that is typically seen in this sector, reconciliation and identification of the origin of funds can sometimes be challenging, and allows funds to move with some degree of anonymity, which is an ML/TF vulnerability.

The draft regulations also introduce new requirements for correspondent banking relationships, and additional requirements related to the Money Services Business (MSB) registration. There are also some technical amendments related to existing reporting requirements and changes related to Administrative Monetary Penalties (AMPs).

Lastly, a new regulation would introduce a prescribed formula for the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) to assess the expenses it incurs in the administration of the PCMLTFA against reporting entities. Such models are seen from other regulators, such as the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC). Currently, FINTRAC is funded through appropriations.

In the following sections, we have summarized what we feel are the most important requirements to note.

Armoured Car Companies

The proposed changes would require a company that engages in “transporting currency or money orders, traveller’s cheques or other similar negotiable instruments” (except for cheques payable to a named person or entity) to be considered an MSB. As such, the following obligations will have to be met:

  • Development of a compliance program;
  • Maintaining an up-to-date MSB registration with FINTRAC;
  • Conducting compliance effectiveness reviews;
  • Reporting certain transactions;
  • Identifying customers;
  • Record keeping;
  • Risk ranking customers and business relationships;
  • Conducting transaction monitoring and list screening;
  • Conducting enhanced due diligence and transaction monitoring for high-risk customers and business relationships; and
  • Follow ministerial directives and transaction restrictions.

One record keeping obligation to note, which is new for armoured car companies, is the requirement to record the following information when transporting CAD 1,000 or more of cash or virtual currency, or CAD 3,000 or more in money orders or similar negotiable instruments:

  • The date and location of collection and delivery;
  • The type and amount of cash, virtual currency or negotiable instrument transported;
  • The name and address of the person or entity that made the request, the nature of their principal business/occupation and, in the case of an individual, their date of birth;
  • The name and address, if known, of each beneficiary;
  • The number of every account affected by the transport, the type of account, and the name of the account holder;
  • Every reference number that is connected to the transport, and has a function; equivalent to that of an account number; and
  • The method of remittance.

An additional requirement that will apply to armoured car companies is in relation to PEP determinations (existing PEP requirements for MSBs still apply). Specifically, a PEP determination is required whenever a person requests that the MSB transport more than CAD 100,000 in cash or virtual currency, or in an amount that is not declared.

Under the proposed regulations, there are some exemptions for reporting that are noteworthy. Large Cash and Large Virtual Currency reporting requirements will not apply where there is an agreement of transportation between:

  • The Bank of Canada and a person or entity in Canada;
  • Two financial entities;
  • Two places of business of the same person or entity; or
  • Canadian currency coins for purposes of delivery under the Royal Canadian Mint.

It is noteworthy, based on the definition, that there may be more than just armoured car companies that are captured under these new requirements. This will be clarified in guidance from FINTRAC that will follow publication of the legislation.

The requirements applicable to armoured car companies will come into force eight months after final publication in the Canada Gazette.

Mortgage Lending

The proposed regulations would require mortgage lenders, brokers, and administrators (mortgage participants) to put in place compliance regimes, similar to that of other regulated entities, which include the following:

  • Development of a compliance program;
  • Conducting compliance effectiveness reviews;
  • Reporting certain transactions;
  • Identifying customers;
  • Keeping records;
  • Risk ranking customers and business relationships;
  • Conducting transaction monitoring and list screening;
  • Conducting enhanced due diligence and transaction monitoring for high-risk customers and business relationships; and
  • Follow ministerial directives and transaction restrictions.

It is noteworthy, that many mortgage brokers already have existing voluntary AML compliance programs and already apply AML measures. This is in part due to various securities regulations and lending partners.

The requirements applicable to mortgage lending will come into force six months after final publication in the Canada Gazette.

Cost Recovery

As part of this round of regulatory changes, there is a net-new regulation, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada Assessment of Expenses Regulations. This regulation will allow FINTRAC to pass on expenses, to reporting entities, that it incurs in the administration of the PCMLTFA. Only the following prescribed entity types are affected by this:

  • Banks and authorized foreign banks;
  • Life insurance companies;
  • Trust and loan corporations; and
  • Every entity that made more than 500 threshold reports during the previous fiscal year.

The regulations provide a formula that FINTRAC would use to calculate the assessment amounts payable by reporting entities on the basis of their annual asset value, and the volume of all threshold transaction reports submitted. For clarity, threshold transaction reports include Large Cash Transaction Reports (LCTRs), Large Virtual Currency Transaction Reports (LVCTRs), Electronic Funds Transfer Reports (EFTRs), and Casino Disbursement Reports (CDRs).

The requirement would come into force on April 1, 2024. This means FINTRAC would commence recovering costs from the 2024-2025 fiscal year and forward.

Other Changes

Enhancing MSB registration

Under the proposed amendments, as part of MSB registration, MSBs would now need to include the telephone numbers and email addresses of its president, directors and every person who owns or controls 20% or more of the MSB. This is in addition to current required information. Additionally, the number of the MSB’s agents, mandataries and branches in each country will be added (currently, only those within Canada are required).

This requirement will come into force twelve months after final publication in the Canada Gazette.

Streamlining requirements for sending AMPs

Under the proposed amendments, FINTRAC would be allowed to serve a reporting entity solely by electronic means when issuing an AMP. Currently, FINTRAC would also have to send an additional copy by registered mail.

This requirement would come into force on registration.

What Next?

There is a 30 day comment period (ending March 20, 2023) for the proposed regulations. It is strongly recommended that industry, and potentially impacted companies, review carefully and provide feedback. Comments can be submitted online via the commenting feature after each section of the proposed changes, or via email directly to Julien Brazeau, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance, 90 Elgin Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0G5.

We’re Here To Help

If you have questions related to the proposed changes, or need help starting to plan, you can get in touch using the online form on our website, by emailing us directly at info@outliercanada.com, or by calling us toll-free at 1-844-919-1623.

The Proposed Retail Payment Activities Regulations

Background

On February 11, 2023, the proposed Retail Payment Activities Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette. This is to support the Retail Payment Activities Act (RPAA) which was released under Bill C-30 and received royal assent in June 2021. The Retail Payment Activities Regulations are required to bring the RPAA into force.

A Payment Service Provider (PSP) is defined as an individual or entity who performs payment functions as a service or business activity that is not incidental to another service or business activity. Certain entities, such as financial institutions, are exempt as they are regulated under other federal obligations (i.e., Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions’ Operational Risk and Enterprise Risk management guidelines.)

The current lack of requirements and supervision increases risks, such as the risk of financial loss in instances of business insolvency, and threats to the security of sensitive personal information. The Regulations aim to address gaps in the supervision of unregulated PSPs and are meant to align with other jurisdictions which already have regimes for PSPs.

The principles that guide the Regulations are:

  • Necessity — supervision should address risks that lead to significant harm to end users and avoid duplication of existing rules;
  • Proportionality — level of supervision should be commensurate with the level of risk posed by the payment activity;
  • Consistency — similar risks should be subject to a similar level of supervision; and
  • Effectiveness — requirements should be clear, accessible and easy to integrate within different payment services.

PSPs will be required to apply and register with The Bank of Canada (no date for this yet). There is a proposed registration fee of CAD 2500. Additionally, an annual assessment fee will be required.

In the following sections, we have summarized what we feel are the most important requirements to note.

Operational Risk Management

PSPs will have to implement and maintain an Operational Risk Framework consisting of the following:

  • Identify its operational risks (i.e., business continuity, cybersecurity, fraud, data management, information technology, human resources, process and product design and implementation, change management, physical security and third parties);
  • Protect its retail payment activities from those risks;
  • Detect incidents and control breakdowns;
  • Respond to and recover from incidents;
  • Review, test and audit its Risk Management Framework;
  • Establish roles and responsibilities for the management of operational risk;
  • Have access to sufficient human and financial resources; and
  • Manage risks from third-party service providers, agents and mandataries.

PSP must ensure that the above are proportional to the impact that a reduction, deterioration, or breakdown of its payment activities could have on end users.

Incident Response

Under the proposed Regulations, PSPs must develop a comprehensive plan for investigating, responding to and recovering from incidents that have a material impact on an end user. An incident is defined as an event or series of related events that is unplanned and that results in or could reasonably be expected to result in the reduction, deterioration or breakdown of any payment activity performed by a PSP.

The incident would be reported to the Bank of Canada and would include the following at a minimum:

  • A description of the incident;
  • The impact on individuals or entities listed in the Act; and
  • Actions taken by the PSP to respond to the incident.

There would also need to be a notice to impacted end users and other impacted parties.

PSPs can only resume operations after an incident once they have verified the integrity and confidentiality of all systems, data and information have been restored, and that it is able to perform retail payment activities without reduction, deterioration or breakdown.

Audit, Testing and Training

Under the proposed Regulations, PSP’s will have to complete various types of testing related to the Framework and have training in place.

All staff who have a role in establishing, implementing or maintaining the PSP’s Risk Management Framework must be provided with the information and training that are necessary to carry out that role.

Framework Review

On at least an annual basis, PSP’s must evaluate its compliance with regulatory requirements. Such a review is also required before any significant changes are made to the PSP’s operations or controls after an incident (defined in the section above).  The findings of the review must be reported to a senior officer.

Testing

PSPs must also establish and implement a testing methodology to determine the effectiveness of its Risk Management Framework. This must be tested at least once every three years and findings must also be provided to a senior officer.

Independent Review

In addition to the above, a PSP must have their Framework independently reviewed at least every three years. The review must be documented and describe the scope, methodology use and findings. Findings of the review must be reported to a senior officer.

Biennial Independent Review

PSPs must have requirements related to safeguarding of funds tested at least once every two years by a sufficiently skilled individual who has had no role in the establishment, implementation, or maintenance of the safeguarding requirements under a PSPs Framework. We discuss what safeguards requirements are below.

Safeguards

PSPs will be required to hold customer funds in a trust account or a segregated account, with insurance or a guarantee to safeguard end-user funds against financial losses due to insolvency.

For consumer protection, the Regulations contain requirements to protect the end user from loss. These requirements include:

  • End-user funds must be held at prudentially regulated financial institutions;
  • Insurance or guarantee cannot be from an affiliate of the PSP;
  • The proceeds from the insurance or guarantee cannot form part of the PSP’s estate;
  • The Bank of Canada must be notified at least 30 days in advance of the cancellation of the insurance or guarantee;
  • PSPs must implement and maintain a written fund safeguarding framework to ensure that end-users have reliable access to their funds without delay; and
  • PSPs must keep a ledger with the names of their end-users and the amount of funds held.

This will require detailed flow of funds documentation.

Reporting

Under the proposed Regulations , PSPs will have to complete various types of reports.

Annual Report

PSPs will need to provide an annual report to the Bank of Canada, no later than March 31 of each year.  Some of the information that must be contained in the report is:

  • A description of any changes made to the payment service provider’s risk management and incident response framework;
  • A description of the human and financial resources for implementing and maintaining the risk management and incident response framework;
  • A description of the PSP’s operational risks in respect of the reporting year, their potential causes and the manner in which they were identified;
  • A description of the systems, policies, procedures, processes, controls, including any approvals required;
  • A description of training;
  • A description of all reviews, and independent reviews; and
  • A description of any incidents that the payment service provider experienced during the reporting year.

Also, the report will need to contain certain volume and value statistics related to the services a PSP is providing.

Significant Change Report

PSPs will be required to notify the Bank of Canada, at least five days in advance, before making a significant change that could materially impact operational risks or the safeguarding of end user funds.

The information that must be contained in the report is:

  • The name and contact information of the individual who may be contacted regarding the significant change;
  • A description of the change or new activity to be performed;
  • The reason for the change or new activity;
  • The date on which the change is to be made;
  • The PSP’s assessment of the effect that the change or new activity will have on its operational risks; and
  • A copy of all documentation in relation to the PSP’s Risk Management Framework, that has been amended to reflect the change or new activity, including any necessary approvals.

If a PSP has senior officers, the change or new activity must be approved and receive formal sign off by senior management before submission of a report. This should be taken into account from a planning perspective, as it can take some time to obtain such internal approvals.

Incident Report

PSPs must report incidents that have a material impact on an end user, other PSPs, or designated financial market infrastructures, to the Bank of Canada and other impacted individuals and entities.

The information that must be contained in the report is:

  • A description of the incident;
  • What impact does the incident have on individuals and entities; and
  • What actions have been taken by the PSP to respond and remediate.

The Regulations do not make it clear what timeframe is required for reporting such incidents, however they do state the standard time to respond to a request from the Bank of Canada is 15 days. Failure to report an incident can result in an administrative monetary penalty classified as very serious.

What Does This Mean?

From the highlights, it’s evident that these Regulations will create a substantial burden for PSPs, especially ones that are smaller or just starting. A significant amount of time, resources and cost are going to be needed to manage the compliance requirements that PSPs will need to follow. If a PSP does not comply or there is partial compliance, they may be subject to administrative monetary penalties that range from CAD 1,000,000 per each serious violation, up to CAD 10,000,000 per each very serious violation. The draft Regulations did not make clear what a dispute process would like.

It should be noted that most PSPs captured under the RPAA are also considered money services businesses (MSBs), and as such must also comply with anti-money laundering (AML) compliance obligations. Check out our blog related to that here.

What Next?

Due to these changes not being final, we wait. There is no set date for when we can expect final legislation or when they will come into force, but it is a good time to start budgeting and align resources.

Also, as there is a 45-day comment period for the proposed Regulations which closes on March 28, 2023, PSPs should review the Regulations carefully and provide feedback. Comments can be submitted online via the commenting feature after each section of the proposed Regulations, via email, or via regular mail to Nicolas Marion, Senior Director, Payments Policy, Department of Finance, 90 Elgin Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0G5.

We’re Here To Help

If you have questions related to the proposed changes, or need help starting to plan, you can get in touch using the online form on our website, by emailing us at info@outliercanada.com, or by calling us toll-free at 1-844-919-1623.

First AML Compliance Effectiveness Review Timing

As a company that gets to work with a lot of startups, and existing companies entering the Canadian market, we get to help folks understand the regulatory landscape in Canada. One of the required elements of a Canadian compliance program is an AML Compliance Effectiveness Review. These reviews must be completed every two years at a minimum. You can think of it like an audit, but for compliance.

The purpose of an effectiveness review is to determine whether your AML compliance program has gaps or weaknesses that may prevent your business from effectively preventing, detecting and deterring money laundering and terrorist financing. Recently, we have seen an increased focus on Effectiveness Reviews during FINTRAC examinations. Specifically, on whether the review really tested the effectiveness of the compliance program as a whole (not just what you say you’re doing, but also what you’re actually doing). This has led to FINTRAC examiners requesting the working papers for completed effectiveness reviews where the report did not clearly describe how the effectiveness was tested and assessed. This is the main reason Outlier has started providing our working papers with the final report. This also provides a pretty good reference point for making sure you are meeting your regulatory expectations.

First Time for Everything

In previous engagements, Outlier has operated on the theory that the clock for when your first review was due stemmed from the MSB’s FINTRAC registration date. However, we were incorrect. It wasn’t until a recent conversation where the registration date preceded any customer transactions by six months, that really spurred on an official clarification from the regulator. The trigger for the 2-year clock to start ticking is not registration but “a registered MSB is required to create a compliance program once it engages in one or more of the MSB-related activities.” This means that the clock starts ticking after the MSB has conducted their first transaction.

Here is a PDF version of the policy interpretation we received from FINTRAC that you can keep for your records.

Potential Corrections

If we have completed a review for you in the past that has a commencement date prior to your first customer transaction, please feel free to reach out so we can amend your report to the proper date.

Upcoming Effectiveness Reviews

While this article talks about your first review, you must also be sure to initiate all subsequent reviews within 2 years of the start date of your previous review. Please note that this is based on the previous commencement date, not the date of completion or issuance of the final report.

Need a Hand?

If you are looking for an idea of pricing for an upcoming review or have questions about a review that is currently underway, please feel free to contact us.

FINTRAC MSB Registration Expired?!?

FINTRAC Registration

Over the past few months, we have heard from several money services businesses (MSBs) that have experienced issues in renewing their MSB registrations with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC). In most cases, these issues are easily resolved. However, if MSB registration issues are not addressed promptly, administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) or criminal charges may ensue.

It is likely that registration-related issues have become more common as FINTRAC is increasingly requesting additional information or clarifications from MSBs as part of the initial registration and registration renewal process. These requests are sent via email to the contact person listed in the MSB registration form.

Check Your MSB registration Status

You can view the status of your MSB registration by searching for your business on the public MSB registry. While this article is about the MSB registration status, anytime you are on this page, it is a useful practice to check to ensure that all of the information is up to date. There are several possible options for the “Registration status of MSB” field:

Registered: this is the status that is displayed for active MSBs. The detailed view will also show the expiry date of the registration.

Ceased: this status is displayed when an MSB has cancelled their registration (e.g. because the business is no longer conducting MSB activity or is only performing MSB activity as the agent of another MSB).

Expired: this status is displayed when an MSB has not submitted an MSB registration renewal on time, has not responded to requests for information from FINTRAC, or has not provided sufficient information to FINTRAC to complete the renewal process.

Revoked: this status indicates that FINTRAC has revoked an MSB’s registration.

If the Expiry Date is Coming Up Soon

If you notice that your MSB’s registration is expiring soon, there are several steps that you should take proactively. First, make sure that you have your login credentials and access FINTRAC’s secure MSB Registration portal. On the left-hand side of the screen, you may see an option to submit your renewal application. If this option is not yet present, it is still a useful practice to select “view completed form” and review the MSB information to ensure that everything is up to date. If there is anything that needs to be updated, you can update the form (information must be updated within 30 days of any changes; do not wait for the renewal date to make updates).

If the renewal can be processed at this time, make sure that you take the time to look at all data fields. Are these fields complete and accurate? Does the information related to the MSB’s beneficial ownership match what will be found in any corporate registries (if not, additional information and/or correction may be required before the registration can be processed). FINTRAC may request additional information by email, and your registration will not be renewed until these queries have been satisfied.

If the Registration is Expired

If you notice that your registration has expired, you should immediately access FINTRAC’s secure MSB Registration portal to renew it. It may be that you have simply missed a deadline, or that you did not notice an error message or request for additional information from FINTRAC. Whatever the cause, you should work to resolve the issue and renew the registration as soon as possible.

If you are not able to renew the registration, contact FINTRAC immediately by emailing guidelines-lignesdirectrices@fintrac-canafe.gc.ca and MSBRegistration@fintrac-canafe.gc.ca immediately with the subject line “URGENT – MSB Renewal Issue – Renewal Date Passed”.

  • In the body of the email, let them know:
  • The company name and MSB number
  • That you have been attempting to renew the MSB registration
  • If you have responded to any requests for additional information, the details of these correspondences (attach copies if possible)
  • Ask what information is needed at this stage to renew the MSB registration

Keep a copy of this and all communications with FINTRAC.

You may also want to consider making a voluntary self-declaration of non-compliance (VSDONC) to FINTRAC. For help with disclosures, check out our previous blog post.

If you receive a “Notice of Violation”

Where an MSB registration is expired, and the MSB continues to perform MSB activities (other than as an agent for another MSB), a penalty may be assessed, and a “Notice of Violation” may be issued. At this stage, a law firm should be engaged (we’re happy to recommend competent firms if this is something that you need). There are specific and relatively short timeframes for all response steps, and this should be treated as urgent.

We’re here to help.

If you are not sure what to do next or need assistance with compliance, please get in touch.

Effectiveness Reviews for Dealers in Virtual Currency

Effective June 1, 2020, dealers in Virtual Currency activities were considered as Money Services Businesses (MSBs) and as such, must comply with MSB obligations under amendments made to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA). One obligation is to have an AML effectiveness review at least once every two years. MSBs must start their effectiveness review no later than two years from the start of their previous review or in the case of dealers in Virtual Currency, no later than June 1, 2022, the date they were considered to be MSBs under law.

Such reviews must test your compliance program and effectiveness of your operations. Our reviews follow a similar format to examinations conducted by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), which you can read more about in a previous Blog Post.

We’re Here To Help

If you have not yet engaged or commenced your review, there are still a couple of weeks to be compliant. If you would like to engage Outlier to conduct your AML Compliance Effectiveness Review or have questions regarding this obligation, please get in touch.

Amendments To The Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Regulations – 2022

Background

On April 27, 2022 amendments to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette. To make reading these changes a little easier, we (thanks Rodney) have created a redlined version of the regulations, with new content showing as tracked changes, which can be found here.

The Regulatory Impact Statement for these changes state the following:

Crowdfunding platforms and some payment service providers are not currently covered by the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (the Act) and therefore have no money laundering and terrorist financing obligations under federal statute. This lack of oversight presents a serious and immediate risk to the security of Canadians and to the Canadian economy. This risk was highlighted in early 2022, when illegal blockades took place across Canada that were financed, in part, through crowdfunding platforms and payment service providers. Allowing these gaps to continue represents a risk to the integrity and stability of the financial sector and the broader economy, as well as a reputational risk for Canada.

Amendments to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Regulations, and consequential amendments to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Administrative Monetary Penalties Regulations, will help prevent the financing of illegal activities through these types of financial services.

What’s Changed?

The changes are substantial and sudden. They will affect many companies that have not been previously under the purview of AML regulation in Canada. These changes are effective immediately and there is no comment period, which is not the norm for such changes.

To help digest these changes, we have summarized what we feel are the most important changes below:

The definition for an electronic funds transfer has been removed and the corresponding section within the body of the regulations was amended. Previous exemptions related to remitting or transmitting from one person or entity to another by Credit or Debit Card, or Prepaid Payment Product if the beneficiary has an agreement with the payment service provider that permits payment for the provision of goods and services, has been revoked for money services businesses, which as we mentioned now includes Payment Service Providers.

The definitions section was amended by adding the following:

  • crowdfunding platform means a website or an application or other software that is used to raise funds or virtual currency through donations. (plateforme de sociofinancement)
  • crowdfunding platform services means the provision and maintenance of a crowdfunding platform for use by other persons or entities to raise funds or virtual currency for themselves or for persons or entities specified by them.

With these changes, crowdfunding platforms and payment service providers will now be subject to existing money services businesses requirements. These obligations include:

  • Registration with FINTRAC;
  • Developing a compliance program;
  • Customer identification and due diligence;
  • Transaction monitoring and customer risk scoring;
  • Reporting certain transactions to regulators and government agencies;
  • Complying with Ministerial Directives; and
  • Keeping records.

Specific to record keeping, crowdfunding platforms that provide services to persons or entities in Canada where a person donates an amount of CAD 1,000 or more in funds or virtual currency will need to:

(a) keep an information record in respect of the person or entity to which they provide those services;

(b) keep a record of the purpose for which the funds or virtual currency are being raised; and

(c) if the person or entity for which the funds or virtual currency are being raised is different from the person or entity referred to in paragraph (a),

      1. keep a record of their name, and
      2. take reasonable measures to obtain their address, the nature of their principal business or their occupation and, in the case of a person, their date of birth, and keep a record of the information obtained.

What Next?

Due to these changes, FINTRAC will need to revise its interpretation of existing requirements to include crowdfunding platforms and payment service providers. There is no set date for when we can expect guidance from FINTRAC. Additionally, various FINTRAC policy interpretations will no longer be able to be relied upon (i.e. policy interpretations related to merchant services as well as payment processing for utility bills, mortgage and rent, payroll, and tuition being exempt from AML obligations). The hope is FINTRAC will issue new policy interpretations, but for now the industry is left with many questions.

We’re Here To Help

If you would like assistance in understanding what these changes mean to your business, or if you need help in creating or updating your compliance program and processes, please get in touch.

Don’t Share STRs or STR Data

Recently the Compliance Officer from a small reporting entity reached out to me to ask an uncomfortable question: should they provide copies of the Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) that they had filed with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) to their financial services providers such as a credit union or bank?

This was a difficult situation for the reporting entity’s Compliance Officer because they were afraid of pushing back too much with the financial services provider. Like most non-bank reporting entities, they rely heavily on the services provided by the bank in order to be able to operate their business. Financial service providers, such as banks and credit unions, have the ability to close the accounts of businesses in Canada (often called de-risking), and it can be difficult for some types of reporting entities to establish new banking or payments relationships. The financial services provider in this situation has significantly more power than the reporting entity that is dependent on them.

My gut reaction was that the reporting entity should not disclose the contents of their STR reports, or provide copies. In Canadian legislation, disclosing the fact that an STR was made, or disclosing the contents of such a report, with the intent to “prejudice a criminal investigation” can be punishable as a criminal offence, with penalties of up to 2 years imprisonment (this is also known as “tipping off”). While there did not appear to be any intent to prejudice a criminal investigation in this case, it still seemed like a bad idea. I did a quick check-in with fellow AML geeks on LinkedIn. There are some great comments here, and I had a number of conversations in DMs and by phone. No one seemed to think that the reporting entity should be providing copies of STRs.

The question then became how to best empower the reporting entity to push back effectively. I submitted the following request to FINTRAC and to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC), both of which have mechanisms to allow Canadians and Canadian companies to ask the regulators to opine on matters free of charge:

One of our clients, a Canadian Money services business (MSB) has been asked by their financial services provider (bank/credit union) to provide copies of the suspicious transaction reports (STRs) and Attempted Suspicious Transaction Reports (ASTRs) that have been filed with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) on an ongoing basis. This struck us as being an overreach in terms of the information that should be disclosed to a service provider, and we are reaching out for an opinion on the appropriateness of these requests.

The financial service provider appears to be of the opinion that this is a reasonable request, and that they may close the MSB’s bank account if the STRs and ASTRs are not provided by the MSB.

I let both FINTRAC and OPC know that I had submitted requests to both. So far, only FINTRAC has responded. Their response is below in full (TL:DR: reporting entities should not share copies of STRs reported to FINTRAC).

Thank you for contacting the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), Canada’s independent agency responsible for the receipt, analysis, assessment and disclosure of information in order to assist in the detection, prevention and deterrence of money laundering and the financing of terrorist activities in Canada and abroad.

I am writing further to your email of July 16th, 2020, wherein you requested clarification regarding the sharing of suspicious transaction reports (STRs) submitted to FINTRAC.

As you know, section 8 of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) states that no person or entity shall disclose that they have made, are making, or will make a report under section 7, or disclose the contents of such a report, with the intent to prejudice a criminal investigation, whether or not a criminal investigation has begun.

The PCMLTFA sets out a regime in which the information contained in financial transaction reports sent to FINTRAC (including STRs) is protected from disclosure except in very limited circumstances. The Act also includes specific provisions aimed at protecting the personal information under FINTRAC’s control. For example, as you may be aware, the PCMLTFA is founded on a prohibition on disclosure (s. 55(1), PCMLTFA). Any disclosure of information or intelligence by FINTRAC must fall under one of the exceptions to this prohibition. Outside of these exceptions, FINTRAC is prohibited from disclosing the contents of financial transaction reports, or even acknowledging their existence.

While reporting entities (REs) are not subject to the same prohibitions, FINTRAC strongly believes that STRs should be regarded as highly sensitive documents, given the role FINTRAC plays in the fight against money laundering (ML) and terrorist activity financing (TF) in Canada, and the fact that STRs are a key source of FINTRAC’s intelligence holdings. From FINTRAC’s perspective, it is not in the public interest for REs to disclose financial transaction reports and the information contained therein. Even beyond this, the collection or disclosure of financial transaction reports, including STRs, without a valid purpose and authority, may infringe on legislated privacy protection obligations. Almost all information within financial transaction reports is personal information about an identifiable individual and is considered financial intelligence by

FINTRAC, collected for the sole purpose of reporting to FINTRAC. The potential harm that could occur from the disclosure of the information in these financial transactions reports is great, and includes compromising: (1) police and national security investigations that are both ongoing or could be undertaken in the future; (2) sources of the information/intelligence within the reports, placing those sources at risk of retaliation; and (3) FINTRAC’s compliance activities, given that data provided by REs is always provided in confidence and that confidence is expected to be maintained by all parties. FINTRAC relies on the information included within STRs to support disclosure of financial intelligence to police and other law enforcement and national security organizations, in the interest of detecting, preventing and deterring ML and TF.

Therefore, while your client (MSB) is not prohibited from sharing the STRs it has submitted to FINTRAC with its service provider (Bank/CU), unless it is with the intent to prejudice a criminal investigation, strong consideration should be given to the above.

If you would like a PDF copy of the complete question and policy position for your due diligence files, or to provide to an external party that is requesting copies of your STRs, or information about their content, you can download it here.

Response from FINTRAC – Re_ Sharing Copies of STRs_ASTRs

A version of this Q&A is also now posted on FINTRAC’s website (PI-10662).

The response from OPC, in contrast, was underwhelming. In essence, they will investigate specific complaints, but they will not issue advanced rulings. That said, if any service provider is insisting that copies of STRs must be shared with them, a complaint to the OPC may be an option.

Response from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada – INFO-084075

Need a hand?

If you have AML or privacy-related questions, we can help. You can get in touch using our online form, by emailing info@outliercanada.com, or by calling us toll-free at 1-844-919-1623.

Regulations for Dealers in Virtual Currency – June 2020

Effective June 1, 2020, entities engaged in Virtual Currency activities are considered as Money Services Businesses (MSBs), and are required to register with FINTRAC and comply with MSB obligations under amendments made to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) that were released on July 19, 2019. Those amendments also require, as of June 1, 2021, reporting large virtual currency transactions. The Department of Finance has since made further amendments to those amended regulations, published in the Canada Gazette on June 10, 2020.

To make reading these changes a little easier, we have created a redlined version of the regulations, with the most recent changes showing as tracked changes, which can be found here.

Dealers in Virtual Currency

It’s important to start by understanding what’s being regulated. This is best done by considering some of the definitions that have been added to the regulation.

fiat currency means a currency that is issued by a country and is designated as legal tender in that country. (monnaie fiduciaire)

funds means

(a) cash and other fiat currencies, and securities, negotiable instruments or other financial instruments that indicate a title or right to or interest in them; or

(b) a private key of a cryptographic system that enables a person or entity to have access to a fiat currency other than cash.

For greater certainty, it does not include virtual currency. (fonds)

virtual currency means

(a) a digital representation of value that can be used for payment or investment purposes that is not a fiat currency and that can be readily exchanged for funds or for another virtual currency that can be readily exchanged for funds; or

(b) a private key of a cryptographic system that enables a person or entity to have access to a digital representation f value referred to in paragraph (a). (monnaie virtuelle)

virtual currency exchange transaction means an exchange, at the request of another person or entity, of virtual currency for funds, funds for virtual currency or one virtual currency for another. (opération de change en monnaie virtuelle)

In terms of who will be regulated, businesses (whether or not the business is incorporated) that conduct transactions on behalf of their customers, including:

  • Exchanging digital currencies for fiat currencies; and
  • Exchanging between virtual currencies.

Current Obligations

Client Identification:

Dealers in Virtual Currency must identify individuals and confirm the existence of entities when they:

  • Remit or transmit funds (see definition above) of $1,000 or more at the request of a customer;
  • Conduct a foreign exchange transaction of $3,000 or more;
  • Enter into an ongoing service agreement with a customer (conduct transactions for a customer that is an entity);
  • Conduct a large cash transaction; and
  • Must take reasonable measures to identify individuals who conduct or attempt to conduct a suspicious transaction.

As of June 2021, there will be an additional requirement to identify virtual currency exchange transactions valued at CAD 1,000. This will include exchanging fiat and virtual currency, as well as exchanges between virtual currencies.

Information on acceptable methods to identify clients can be found on FINTRAC’s website. 

Reporting:

For reporting, there are two important dates. By June 1, 2020, dealers in virtual currency will need to report the same types of transactions that MSBs are currently required to report. These are:

  • Electronic Funds Transfers: if you send or receive international electronic funds transfers (EFTs), including wires, valued at CAD 10,000 or more, by or on behalf of the same customer, it must be reported to FINTRAC within 5 working days.
  • Large Cash Transactions: if you receive cash (this means fiat in the form of bills and/or coins) valued at CAD 10,000 or more in the same 24-hour period, by or on behalf of the same customer, it must be reported to FINTRAC within 15 calendar days.
  • Suspicious Transactions: if there are “reasonable grounds to suspect” that a completed attempted transaction is related to money laundering or terrorist financing, it must be reported to FINTRAC “as soon as practicable” of the discovery of a fact that led you to determine that the transaction was suspicious.

FINTRAC defines “as soon as practicable” in its Glossary as follows:

A time period that falls in-between immediately and as soon as possible within which a suspicious transaction report (STR) be submitted to FINTRAC. In this context, the report must be completed promptly, taking into account the facts and circumstances of the situation. While some amount of delay is permitted, it must have a reasonable explanation. The completion and submission of the report should take priority over other tasks.

FINTRAC has released more specific guidance on what “measures” enable reporting entities to have “reasonable grounds to suspect”.

More information on suspicious transaction reporting can be found on FINTRAC’s website.

  • Terrorist Property: if you’re in possession of property (which includes funds and virtual currency) that belong to a terrorist or terrorist group, it must be reported without delay, and the property must be frozen. In addition to reporting to FINTRAC, these reports are also sent to the CSIS and RCMP – by fax. In order to know if customers fall into this category, it is important to screen against the United Nations Security Council consolidated list. We’ve worked with some friends on a tool to make this easier, which you can try here (use the code Free100 for a free trial).

If you are required to report transactions valued at CAD 10,000 or more in a 24-hour period, you must have a mechanism in place to detect reportable transactions which is described in your compliance documentation.

By June 1, 2021, a new report will be introduced:

  • Large Virtual Currency Transactions: if you receive virtual currency valued at CAD 10,000 or more in the same 24-hour period, by or on behalf of the same customer, it must be reported to FINTRAC within 5 working days.

Amendments to the Amendments

The amendments to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) that were published in the Canada Gazette on June 10, 2020 create the following obligations for dealers in Virtual Currency:

Travel Rule

One of the most significant changes that will impact Virtual Currency Dealers as MSBs relates to a new requirement for records to be kept on all virtual currency transfers of CAD 1,000 or more.

The record must contain the following:

  1. include with the transfer, the name, address and, if any, the account number or other reference number of both the person or entity that requested the transfer and the beneficiary; and
  2. take reasonable measures to ensure that any transfer received includes the information referred to in paragraph (a) above.

Where the information required was not obtained, MSBs must have written risk-based policies and procedures for determining if the transaction should be suspended, rejected, or if another follow-up measure should be taken.

PEP

In addition to the existing requirement for MSBs to take reasonable measures to determine whether a client from whom they receive an amount of CAD 100,000 or more is a Politically exposed person (PEP), the amendments will require MSBs to make a PEP determination when they establish a business relationship with a client.

A reminder that a business relationship is defined as:

If a person or entity does not have an account with you, a business relationship is formed once you have conducted two transactions or activities for which you have to:

  • verify the identity of the individual; or
  • confirm the existence of the entity.

MSBs will also periodically need to take reasonable measures to determine whether a person with whom they have a business relationship is a PEP. We will have to await guidance from FINTRAC on this, but our guess is the frequency for determination will align to the frequency for customer information and identification updates.

Given the definition of a business relationship, we do not expect this requirement to be overly burdensome. If you currently conduct list screening, PEP screening could easily be added to that process. You are also able to ask the customer directly, while presenting the definition of a PEP, and record their response.

If a positive determination is made, the following records must be kept:

  1. the office or position, and the organization or institution, in respect of which the person is determined to be a politically exposed foreign person, a politically exposed domestic person or a head of an international organization, or a family member of, or a person who is closely associated with, one of those persons;
  2. the date of the determination
  3. the source, if known, of the person’s wealth;
  4. the risk rating; and
  5. the name of the member of senior management who reviewed the client, and the date the client was approved.

Other Relevant Blog Posts for Dealers in Virtual Currency

What’s happening in the VC community? 

Messaging Standard Overview

In October 2018, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) adopted changes to its Recommendations to explicitly clarify that they apply to financial activities involving virtual assets (VA), effectively expanding the scope of the Recommendations to apply to virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and other obliged entities that engage in or provide covered VA activities.

“There exists a need for VASPs to adopt uniform approaches and establish common standards to enable them to meet their obligations resulting from the FATF Recommendations as they apply to affected entities”.

The implementation of obligations such as the travel rule for virtual currency transactions, in the majority of cases, would require an accompanying technology. To tackle issues such as this, a cross-industry, cross-sectoral joint working group of technical experts was formed in December 2019 and a new technical standard developed by the group.  The Joint Working Group on interVASP Messaging Standards (JWG) was established  by three leading international industry associations representing VASPs:
Chamber of Digital Commerce
Global Digital Finance
International Digital Asset Exchange Association 

We will have to wait for FINTRAC guidance to see if such a standard is provided as an example.

More information on the working group can be found here.

To download a copy of the standard anonymously, use this link:

DOWNLOAD THE STANDARD

We’re Here To Help

If you would like assistance in updating your compliance program and processes, or have any questions related to the changes, please get in touch!

Amending the Amendments! 2020 AML Changes for MSBs

Background

Back on July 10, 2019, the highly anticipated final version of the amendments to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) and its enacted regulations were published. However, on June 10, 2020, further amendments to those amended regulations were published in the Canada Gazette. To make reading these changes a little easier, we have created a redlined version of the regulations, with new content showing as tracked changes, which can be found here.

The purpose of this round of amendments is to better align measures with international standards and level the playing field across reporting entities by applying stronger customer due diligence requirements and beneficial ownership requirements to designated non-financial businesses and professions (DNFBPs). The amendments come into force on June 1, 2021.

We have summarized the changes that will have an impact on Money Services Businesses (MSB)s below.

Travel Rule

One of the most significant changes that will impact MSBs and Foreign Money Services Businesses (FMSB)s relates to a new requirement for records to be kept on all virtual currency transfers of CAD 1,000 or more.

The record must contain the following:

  1. include with the transfer, the name, address and, if any, the account number or other reference number of both the person or entity that requested the transfer and the beneficiary; and
  2. take reasonable measures to ensure that any transfer received includes the information referred to in paragraph (a) above.

Where the information required was not obtained, MSBs and FMSBs must have written risk-based policies and procedures for determining if the transaction should be suspended, rejected or if another follow-up measure should be taken.

PEP

In addition to the existing requirement for MSBs and FMSBs to take reasonable measures to determine whether a client from whom they receive an amount of CAD 100,000 or more is a Politically exposed person (PEP), the amendments will require MSBs and FMSBs to make a PEP determination when they establish a business relationship with a client.

A reminder that a business relationship is defined as:

If a person or entity does not have an account with you, a business relationship is formed once you have conducted two transactions or activities for which you have to:

  • verify the identity of the individual; or
  • confirm the existence of the entity.

MSBs and FMSBs will also periodically need to take reasonable measures to determine whether a person with whom they have a business relationship is a PEP. We will have to await guidance from FINTRAC on this, but our guess is the frequency for determination will align to the frequency for customer information and identification updates.

Given the definition of a business relationship, we do not expect this requirement to be overly burdensome. If you currently conduct list screening, PEP screening could easily be added to that process. You are also able to ask the customer directly, while presenting the definition of a PEP, and record their response.

If a positive determination is made, the following records must be kept:

  1. the office or position, and the organization or institution, in respect of which the person is determined to be a politically exposed foreign person, a politically exposed domestic person or a head of an international organization, or a family member of, or a person who is closely associated with, one of those persons;
  2. the date of the determination; and
  3. the source, if known, of the person’s wealth.

We’re Here To Help

If you would like assistance in updating your compliance program and processes, or have any questions related to the changes, please get in touch!

Are You a Foreign Money Services Business?

Background

On July 10, 2019 amendments to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) and its enacted regulations were released in the Canada Gazette. The amendments require entities that conduct MSB activities from outside of Canada, directed towards Canadians, to be considered Foreign Money Services Businesses (FMSBs) and therefore comply with Canadian AML obligations.  Foreign MSBs must register with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) and become compliant by June 1, 2020. Check out our blog post to see what your full requirements are.

What Is A Money Services Business?

You are considered an MSB in Canada if your business offers any of the following services:

  • Foreign exchange dealing;
  • Remitting or transmitting funds;
  • Issuing or redeeming money orders, traveller’s cheques and other negotiable instruments; or
  • Dealing in virtual currencies.

What Is A Foreign Money Services Business?

You are considered an FMSB if all of the following criteria applies to your business:

  • The person or entity is engaged in the business of providing at least one money services business (MSB) service;
  • The person or entity does not have a place of business in Canada;
  • The person or entity directs its MSB services at persons or entities in Canada; and
  • They provide these services to clients in Canada. 

For further clarity, you must direct services at persons or entities located in Canada. FINTRAC clarifies that directing services means that the services offered takes into consideration a Canadian audience. For example, if marketing or advertising materials are used with the intent to promote services and to acquire business from persons or entities in Canada. Where a business advertises online, but may not specifically exclude Canadian IP addresses, this fact on its own would not constitute directing services at persons or entities in Canada.

A business would be seen as directing services at persons or entities in Canada if at least one of the following applies:

  • The business’s marketing or advertising is directed at persons or entities located in Canada; 
  • The business operates a “.ca” domain name; or
  • The business is listed in a Canadian business directory.

Note that additional criteria may be considered when determining whether you are directing services at persons or entities in Canada. Examples of the additional criteria that may be considered is outlined in FINTRAC’s FMSB Annex 1.

We’re Here To Help

If you are, or think you may be, a foreign MSB and have any questions related to your compliance obligations in Canada, please get in touch!

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