Legislative overview.
Amendment to the Act on Liability of Collective Entities for Prohibited Acts Subject to Penalty (corporate criminal liability)
The key change is a new definition of collective entity limiting the scope of such entities. According to the bill, the Act will be applicable to:
- Collective entities employing at least 500 persons in at least one of the last two financial years, or
- Entities with an annual net turnover from the sale of goods, products and services and from financial operations exceeding €100 million.
The final version of the bill is expected to be presented in Q3 2022.
Amendment of the legislation on mortgage agreements
The Senate amendments to the amendment on mortgages and the supervision of mortgage brokers and agents.
The amendments extend applicability of the law to cover loan agreements – in the case of a loan secured by a mortgage, the mortgage agreement may specify the additional cost of the loan to be borne by the consumer until the mortgage is registered.
The European Banking Authority against terrorist financing
The European Banking Authority has published guidelines setting out the roles and responsibilities of the AML/CFT compliance officer and of the management body of credit or financial institutions.
Financial media overview
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A bill to amend the Act on Competition and Consumer Protection, according to which, among other things, the powers of the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) are extended. The bill is currently being assessed.
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Draft ordinance of the Council of Ministers to change the list of procedures and services in which an electronic document and certificate can be used to establish the identity of a Ukrainian citizen. The ordinance is scheduled for adoption in Q3 2022.
Sectoral AML Service Centre
The National Clearing House (KIR) and the Polish Bank Association (ZBP) are launching a solution to streamline the detection of illegal transactions.
The Sectoral Service Centre has been tasked to provide structural and organisational assistance to banks in fulfilling their obligations under money laundering regulations.
Inflation in the eurozone
Inflation in the eurozone reached 9.1% in August and turned out to be higher than expected. This may result in the European Central Bank hiking its key interest rate by up to 75 bps at its meeting of 8 September.
Rising inflation in the eurozone is also the reason why the European Central Bank has introduced a new asset purchase programme – the Transmission Protection Instrument (TPI), which is designed to limit yield spreads between member states’ bonds.
By Andrzej Palys, Partner, Kochanski & Partners