The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently announced that it signed a DSA with the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), and Philippine National Police (PNP) on February 28. This agreement aims to provide timely access to reliable and sufficient beneficial ownership data to authorised bodies, adhering to the guidelines established by the Financial Action Task Force.
The SEC has signed a data sharing deal on beneficial ownership with key government agencies in a bid to intensify fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. https://t.co/taHqAfhHSp
— ABS-CBN News Channel (@ANCALERTS) March 21, 2023
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is a global intergovernmental organisation that aims to combat money laundering and terrorist financing by establishing international guidelines. As part of its efforts to support these guidelines, the SEC has implemented several circulars that gather beneficial ownership data from its regulated agencies.
Through the recently signed agreement with the regulated agencies, the SEC can now provide competent authorities with prompt access to precise and adequate information about the Ultimate Beneficial Owners, in accordance with FATF recommendations.
According to the regulator, the circulars mentioned earlier have proven to be an important source of information in determining the individuals who hold ultimate control over the corporation.
The SEC has clarified that while legal owners of a corporation are defined as individuals or entities that have the controlling ownership interest or decision-making power, beneficial owners are distinguished from them. Furthermore, the SEC has stated that the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and other circulars issued by the National Privacy Commission will be integrated into the deal to safeguard finances and sensitive data.