The high standards and commitment to transparency have been recognised, said Geoff Cook, CEO of Jersey Finance, commenting on UK House of Commons debate, which considered a set of amendments to the UK Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Bill.
It concluded that the amendment, with respect to the overseas territories, was carried while the amendment tabled with respect to the Crown dependencies was withdrawn.
The withdrawal of the amendment, which provided for UK domestic policy to be applied to the Crown dependencies in respect of public registers, has been welcomed by Jersey Finance.
It underlines the contention that the UK Parliament cannot and should not seek to legislate for the Crown dependencies.
Commenting on the ruling Cook said: “Jersey continues to remain absolutely aligned with the UK in terms of its commitment to combat money laundering and financial crime. We are confident that our verified central register of beneficial ownership, backed up by trust and company service provider licensing, is fully in line with international standards and remains the best way of achieving continuing compliance with international standards.”
He added: “While this outcome is a sensible and pragmatic result for the jurisdiction, the debate has given Jersey another opportunity to clarify its approach to managing and sharing beneficial ownership information.”
“Information on our central register, which is tried and tested for almost three decades, is available to the people who need that vital information and we are constantly working with law enforcement agencies and other relevant authorities to ensure they have everything they need.”
He concluded: “We will continue to work closely with the UK and international regulatory bodies to ensure that we remain a first class-transparent centre of excellence.”
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