ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING DIRECTIVE: a provision that provides that information on the beneficial owners of companies established in the territory of EU Member States is in any case available to any member of the general public.

The Pan Cypriot Bar Association (CyBar) informs its members of the Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 22 November 2022 in Joint Cases C-37/20

In this decision, the Grand Chamber of the Court found a conflict with the provisions of the Anti-Money Laundering Directive (Directive (EU) 2015/849), which requires Member States to ensure that any member of the general public has access to information on the beneficial owners of companies and other legal persons having a registered office in their territory, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (the Charter).

In the opinion of the Court, access by the general public to information about beneficial owners constitutes a serious interference with the fundamental rights to respect for private life and the protection of personal data.

The Court added that the receipt by the public of information about beneficial owners, subject to electronic registration, cannot demonstrate the use of this information within the legal framework and for the intended purpose of public interest and fundamental rights guaranteed by the Charter, nor that there are sufficient guarantees in favor of data subjects for effective protection their personal data from the risks of misuse.

CyBar has already requested the Registrar of Companies to immediately suspend the possibility of public access to the Register of Beneficiaries until the relevant legislative provisions are studied and enacted.