The Regulation on Measures to Prevent Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism (the “Regulation”), prepared pursuant to Article 27 of Law No. 5549 on the Prevention of Laundering Proceeds of Crime (the “Law”), was published in the Official Gazette on 9 January 2008 and entered into force on 1 April 2008.
Under the Regulation, in business relationships between obliged parties and customers that involve an element of continuity, such as opening an account, issuing a loan or credit card, providing a safe deposit box, financing, factoring, financial leasing, life insurance or private pension services, customers and persons acting on behalf of customers must be identified by obtaining identity information and verifying its accuracy, regardless of the transaction amount.
In addition, even where a transaction does not form part of an ongoing business relationship, customers and persons acting on behalf of or for the account of customers must be identified by obtaining identity information and verifying its accuracy in the following circumstances:
Where the transaction amount, or the total amount of multiple linked transactions, is TRY 185,000 or more.
For electronic transfers, where the transaction amount, or the total amount of multiple linked transactions, is TRY 15,000 or more.
Where circumstances require a suspicious transaction report, regardless of the amount.
Where there is doubt as to the adequacy or accuracy of previously obtained customer identification information, regardless of the amount.
Persons requesting a transaction must declare, before carrying out the transaction, if they are acting on behalf of another person. Following such a declaration, the identity and authority of the person requesting the transaction, as well as the identity of the person on whose behalf they are acting, shall be established in accordance with Articles 6 to 14 of the Regulation.
In ongoing business relationships established with legal entities registered with the trade registry, the identities of natural and legal person shareholders holding more than 25% of the legal entity’s shares shall be established in accordance with Articles 6 and 7 of the Regulation.
Pursuant to Article 15 of the Law, any person who acts in their own name but on behalf of another person in a transaction requiring identity verification shall, if they fail to provide written notification of the person on whose behalf they are acting before carrying out the transaction, be subject to imprisonment for a term of six months to one year or a judicial fine of up to 5,000 days.
This notice is issued pursuant to Article 17 of the Regulation.
