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BSP CIRCULAR NO. 302
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
CIRCULAR NO. 302
Series of 2001
Pursuant to Monetary Board Resolution No. 1641 dated 11 October 2001,
the following rules and regulations implementing Section 9 of R.A. No.
9160, otherwise known as the "Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001" are hereby
issued as follows:
Section 1. Banks, quasi-banks, trust entities and all other institutions,
and their subsidiaries and affiliates supervised or regulated by the Bangko
Sentral ng Pilipinas (covered institutions) are hereby directed to strictly
comply with the following provisions of Section 9 of R.A. No. 9160 upon
its effectivity on 17 October 2001:
Sec. 9. Prevention of Money Laundering: Customer Identification Requirements
and Record Keeping -
- Customer identification. - Covered institutions shall establish and
record the true identity of its clients based on official documents.
They shall maintain a system of verifying the true identity of their
clients and, in case of corporate clients, require a system of verifying
their legal existence and organizational structure, as well as the authority
and identification of all persons purporting to act on their behalf.
The provisions of existing laws to the contrary notwithstanding,
anonymous accounts, accounts under fictitious names, and all other
similar accounts shall be absolutely prohibited. Peso and foreign
currency non-checking numbered accounts shall be allowed. The BSP
may conduct annual testing solely limited to the determination of
the existence and the identity of the owners of such accounts.
- Record Keeping. - All records of all transactions of covered institutions
shall be maintained and safely stored for five (5) years from the dates
of transactions. With respect to closed accounts, the records on customer
identification, account files and business corrrespondence, shall be
preserved and safely stored for at leat five (5) years from the dates
when they were closed.
- Reporting of Covered Transactions. - Covered institutions shall report
to the AMLC all covered transactions within five (5) working days from
occurrence thereof, unless the Supervising Authority concerned prescribes
a longer period not exceeding ten (10) working days.
When reporting covered transactions to the AMLC, covered institutions
and their officers, employees, representatives, agents, advisors,
consultants or associates shall not be deemed to have violated Republic
Act. No. 1405, as amended; Republic Act. No. 6426, as amended; Republic
Act. No. 8791 and other similar laws, but are prohibited from communicating,
directly or indirectly, in any manner or by any means, to any person
the fact that a covered transaction report was made, the contents
thereof, or any other information in relation thereto. In case of
violation thereof, the concerned officer, employee, representative,
agent, advisor, consultant or associate of the covered institution,
shall be criminally liable. However, no administrative, criminal or
civil proceedings, shall lie against any person for having made a
covered transaction report in the regular performance of his duties
and in good faith, whether or not such reporting results in any criminal
prosecution under this Act or any other Philippine law.
When reporting covered transactions to the AMLC, covered institutions
and their officers, employees, representatives, agents, advisors,
consultants or associates are prohibited from communicating, directly
or indirectly, in any manner or by any means, to any person, entity,
the media, the fact that a covered transaction report was made, the
contents therof, or any other information in relation thereto. Neither
may such reporting be published or aired in any manner or form by
the mass media, electronic mail, or other similar devices. In case
of violation thereof, the concerned officer, employee, representative,
agent, advisor, consultant or associate of the covered institution,
or media shall be held criminally liable.
Section 2. Sanction and Penalties. Whenever a covered institution violates
the provisions of Section 9 of R.A. No. 9160 or of this Circular, the
officer(s) or other persons responsible for such violation shall be punished
by a fine of not less than Fifty Thousand Pesos (P50,000) nor more than
Two Hundred Thousand Pesos (P200,000) or by imprisonment of not less than
two (2) years nor more than ten (10) years, or both, at the discretion
of the court pursuant to Section 36 of R.A. No. 7653, otherwise known
as "The New Central Bank Act".
Without prejudice to the criminal sanctions prescribed above against
the culpable persons, the Monetary Board may, at its discretion, impose
upon any covered institution, its directors and/or officers for any violation
of Section 9 of R.A. No. 9160, the administrative sanctions provided under
Section 37 of R.A. No. 7653.
This Circular shall take effect immediately.
FOR THE MONETARY BOARD:
ARMANDO L. SURATOS
Officer-in-Charge
11 October 2001
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