The Investment Dealers Association’s amendments to Regulation 1300.1 requiring the identification of beneficial owners of corporate accounts have been approved for immediate implementation.

In a notice released today, the IDA says the amendments make it clear that beneficial ownership is an essential fact regarding non-individual accounts. The IDA says firms should take reasonable steps to keep current regarding any information about a client that is material to the operation of the account and the firm’s know your client and customer due diligence obligations.

While the revised regulation requires members to obtain beneficial ownership information for non-individual accounts opened prior to its implementation, there is no requirement to verify the identity of beneficial owners of such accounts.

The IDA says that firms can rely on beneficial ownership information provided by the authorized representatives of the client or proposed client, absent any reason for believing that the information is incomplete or unreliable. As well, firms are required to identify people owning a greater than 10% interest in a corporation. The requirement is keyed on ownership interest, not on voting control.

The IDA says that its members should “obtain a good understanding of the control structure of corporate and other non-individual clients and the nature of their business or other purposes”. The SRO warns, “Members should view with suspicion any indications that a corporation has been structured so as to conceal its true beneficial ownership or avoid any requirement to identify beneficial owners. Any such suspicions should result in additional enquiries before a decision is made to do business with the prospective client.”

The standard for verification of the identity of beneficial owners is more flexible under the amended regulation than for individual accountholders under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Regulations. The basic principle is that verification methods must be reliable and independent of the client.

Beneficial ownership information is not required for a financial institution subject to a satisfactory regulatory regime in the country in which it is located. Member countries of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering and Basel Accord countries can be considered to have satisfactory regulatory regimes.