Newsroom

NAFCU Senior Regulatory Affairs Counsel Aminah Moore wrote to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding beneficial ownership information (BOI) access and safeguards. The proposed rule would authorize certain recipients to receive BOI reported to FinCEN with the reporting company’s consent. While the letter expressed NAFCU’s support for the proposal, Moore also provided recommendations to the agency.

In the letter, Moore wrote that NAFCU recommends FinCEN independently verify the BOI to ensure accuracy so credit unions can reasonably rely on the information. The proposal also designates multiple categories of BOI recipients, including federal regulators and “other appropriate regulatory agencies.” Moore noted that NAFCU encourages FinCEN to define the term other appropriate regulator, as it “leaves a large portion of the rule open for misinterpretation.”

Additionally, Moore explained that NAFCU anticipates some barriers in providing consent to share BOI.

“NAFCU discourages FinCEN from requiring the consent to be in writing and instead recommends that the simple checking of a box be acceptable. If the consent is required to be more than a check the box, that may be faced with reluctance from the applicant and can become time consuming and burdensome to [financial institutions],” Moore said.

The letter makes other recommendations to FinCEN, including suggestions to:

·         use recent technology for fast searches within the BOI database and a user-friendly interface;

·         consult with regulators to confirm consistent examination and rules for use of BOI;

·         state in the customer due diligence (CDD) rule that the BOI provided is enough to satisfy the CDD rule; and

·         itemize what BOI can be used for.

NAFCU will continue to engage FinCEN regarding this rule. Stay tuned to NAFCU Today for the latest on this topic.