Instruction issued to trust offices ABiLiTieS Trust B.V. and The Netherlands Trust Services B.V. for shortcomings in their SIRA and customer due diligence

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 Abilities and NTS in their SIRA properly identify all relevant risks related to their customers and services and provide insight into the way in which they mitigate these identified risks in such a way as to operate within their 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 relationships on an ongoing basis, allowing them to detect any unusual transactions and report them to the FIU-NL in a timely manner. Abilities and NTS failed to fulfil their statutory obligations to conduct proper customer due diligence, nor did they have a robust SIRA.

SIRA and customer due diligence

DNB reviewed the SIRA of Abilities and NTS, finding, among other things, that it did not capture all relevant risks. The SIRA also failed to provide sufficient insight into how the 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 relate to establishing the customer’s integrity risk profile, adequately mitigating identified integrity risks, establishing the origin of the object company's assets and the asset position of the ultimate beneficial owner (UBO) and conducting continuous monitoring of the business relationship, among other things. On this basis, DNB concluded that Abilities and NTS failed to sufficiently identify the relevant integrity risks with respect to their customers, with the additional consequence that Abilities and NTS are insufficiently able to take appropriate mitigating measures.

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 Abilities and NTS, DNB took into account that a formal measure was appropriate given the severity, number and duration of the instances of non-compliance found. The prescribed course of action in the instruction entailed that Abilities and NTS had to bring their SIRA into compliance with the statutory requirements and ensure that all service files verifiably meet the relevant provisions of the Wtt 2018 by 31 July 2024 at the latest. 

Objection

Abilities and NTS lodged an objection to the instruction. On 3 December 2024, DNB met the objection to the extent that it gave them 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. Abilities and NTS did not appeal this decision. This means that the instruction and the decision on the objection became irrevocable.

See below for the full instruction 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). 

Current status

The table below shows the current status of this decision.