Under the new online platform, Collaborative Sharing of Money Laundering/Terrorism Financing (ML/TF) Information & Cases (“COSMIC“), prescribed financial institutions (i.e. banks in Singapore or financial institutions (other than a bank) that are prescribed under subsidiary legislation) (“prescribed FIs“) can securely share with one another information on a “relevant party” who exhibits multiple “red flags” that may indicate potential financial crime concerns, if stipulated thresholds are met.
A “relevant party” is a person who is, seeks to be, or has been a prescribed FI’s customer, and has been prescribed by MAS as such a “relevant party” under subsidiary legislation.
For purposes of information sharing, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (“MAS“) intends to capture all business relations that a person can have with a bank in Singapore, which are relevant for anti-money laundering (AML)/ countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) purposes.
From 6 December 2023 to 5 January 2024, MAS sought comments on its Consultation Paper on the Regulations Relating to FI-FI Information Sharing for AML/CFT regarding the proposed scope of “relevant party in relation to a prescribed FI that is a bank in Singapore. For details of the proposed definition, please refer here for the Consultation Paper.
MAS also conducted a related public consultation on a new COSMIC Notice which sets out requirements relating to the sharing of information through COSMIC, along with related amendments to MAS Notice 626 on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism – Banks. You may read more about this in our Legal Update titled “MAS Seeks Feedback on Requirements on FI-FI Information Sharing under COSMIC for AML/CFT“
