Instruction issued to trust office DTS Dutch Trust Services B.V. for shortcomings identified in its SIRA and customer due diligence

Enforcement measures

On 14 May 2024, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) issued an instruction to trust office DTS Dutch Trust Services B.V. (DTS) for shortcomings found in its systematic integrity risk analysis (SIRA) and customer due diligence. At DTS’s request, DNB amended the instruction by means of an amendment decision dated 17 July 2024.

Published: 11 June 2025

Core of the instruction

As gatekeepers of the Dutch financial system, trust offices have an important role to play in combating financial crime. This is precisely why it is important that DTS should have a clear overview of its customer portfolio and mitigate the potential risks related to its customers and services. Of no less importance is the requirement to conduct proper customer due diligence.
DNB's examination shows that DTS failed to adequately identify the risks related to geographies and complex structures in its SIRA. Furthermore, it failed to provide sufficient insight into the way in which it mitigated the risks it identified. In addition, DNB's examination found several shortcomings in DTS’s customer due diligence.
DNB issued an instruction in view of these shortcomings.

Gatekeeper role

Action against money laundering and terrorist financing is fundamental to the effective countering of serious crime. Trust offices have an important gatekeeper function in this regard. There is a risk that trust services could be misused for money laundering, terrorist financing or other socially improper behaviour. Based on the Act on the Supervision of Trust Offices (Wet toezicht trustkantoren – Wtt 2018), they are required to design their business operations so that they can effectively identify and manage integrity risks. To perform this task effectively, it is important that DTS in its SIRA properly identifies all relevant risks related to its customers and services and provides insight into the way in which it mitigates these identified risks in such a way as to operate within its risk appetite. Equally importantly, trust offices should make every effort to detect potential abuse both prior to and during their service provision. They must possess detailed knowledge of their customers, the object companies to be served and the rationale for their services. Finally, it is of vital importance that trust offices monitor their customers on an ongoing basis, allowing them to detect any unusual transactions and report them to FIU-NL in a timely manner. DTS failed to fulfil its statutory obligations to conduct proper customer due diligence, nor did it have a robust SIRA.

SIRA and customer due diligence

DNB reviewed the SIRA of DTS and found that it did not capture all relevant risks. For instance, risks related to geographies and complex legal structures had not been sufficiently identified. The SIRA also failed to provide sufficient insight into how a range of identified risks are mitigated.

In addition, customer due diligence fell short of the statutory requirements. DNB established this on the basis of several service files it reviewed. DNB found shortcomings in all of these files. The shortcomings in the service files examined include establishing and verifying the identity of the customer's and/or the object company's ultimate beneficial owner, the transaction profile, the origin of the object company's assets, establishing the ultimate beneficial owner's financial position, and obtaining insufficient understanding of the control structure. DNB also found that DTS failed to sufficiently mitigate the relevant integrity risks with respect to customers.

Instruction

DNB's enforcement approach is primarily aimed at promoting compliance with the law. An instruction is an enforcement measure in which DNB orders an institution to perform one or more prescribed actions aimed at terminating or redressing its non-compliance. In issuing the instruction to DTS, DNB took into account that a formal measure was appropriate for the severity, number and duration of the instances of non-compliance found. The prescribed course of action in the instruction entailed that NTS had to bring its SIRA into compliance with the statutory requirements and ensure that all service files demonstrably meet the relevant provisions of the Wtt 2018 by 31 July 2024 at the latest. In its amendment decision of 17 July 2024, DNB decided to extend the compliance deadline of the customer due diligence component to 31 March 2025.

Objection

DTS lodged an objection to the instruction. On 3 December 2024, DNB met the objection to the extent that it gave DTS until 31 March 2025 at the latest to terminate the identified instances of non-compliance with regard to the SIRA. DNB declared the objection unfounded in all other respects. The statutory six-week period for lodging an appeal has now expired and no appeal has been lodged, making the instruction, the amendment decision and the decision on the objection irrevocable.

See below for the full instruction, the amendment decision and the decision on the objection, excluding confidential information. For additional information, you can contact our Information Desk by telephone at 0800 020 1068 (freephone in the Netherlands) or +31 20 524 9111 (if calling from abroad).