On 16 December 2022, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) announced an amendment that is the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Ordinance 2022 (Amendment Ordinance). There are three changes relating to customer due diligence (CDD) measures and which will be effective on 1 June 2023.
The definition of a PEP is amended to an individual who is or has been entrusted with a prominent public function in a place outside Hong Kong. The AMLO also seeks to better align the definition of “beneficial owner” in relation to a trust with that of “controlling person” under the Inland Revenue Ordinance (Cap. 112). And it allows the use of a recognized digital identification system for checking of customer due diligence which can be applied to the special requirements in situations that a customer is not physically present for identification process.