19. 12.90 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 319/9 
II 
(Preparatory Acts) 
COMMISSION 
Amendment to the proposal for a Council Directive on prevention of use of the financial system 
for the purpose of money laundering (') 
COM(90) 593 final — SYN 254 
(Submitted by the Commission pursuant to Article 149(3) of the EEC Treaty on 30 November 
1990) 
(90/C 319/12) 
(') OJ No C 106, 28. 4. 1990, p. 6. 
ORIGINAL PROPOSAL AMENDED PROPOSAL 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community and in particular Article 57 (2), 
third sentence, thereof, 
Recital 13 
Whereas preserving the financial system from money 
laundering is a task which cannot be carried out by the 
judicial and law enforcement authorities without the 
cooperation of credit and financial institutions and their 
supervisory authorities; whereas banking secrecy must be 
lifted in cases of criminal law; whereas a mandatory 
system of reporting suspicious transactions is the most 
effective way to accomplish such cooperation; whereas a 
special protection clause is necessary to exempt 
employees and directors from responsibility by breaching 
restrictions on disclosure of information; THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
an Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
2), Economic Community and in particular Article 57 (2), 
first and third sentence, thereof, 
(new) 
Whereas, in order to facilitate money laundering investi­
gations, credit and financial institutions should maintain 
adequate records of all transactions, in electronic or 
written forms. 
Recital 13 
ey Whereas preserving the financial system from money 
he laundering is a task which cannot be carried out by the 
he judicial and law enforcement authorities without the 
eir cooperation of credit and financial institutions and their 
be supervisory authorities; whereas banking secrecy must be 
try lifted in cases of criminal law; whereas a mandatory 
i>st system of reporting suspicious transactions which ensures 
; a that information is transmitted to the mentioned auth-
ipt orities without alerting the customers concerned, is the 
ng most effective way to accomplish such cooperation; 
whereas a special protection clause is necessary to 
exempt credit and financial institutions, their employees 
and their directors from responsibility by breaching 
restrictions on disclosure of information; Second visa and remainder of the preamble unchanged 
Recitals 1 to 1 1 unchanged 
Recital 1 la 
Recital 12 unchanged 
NoC 319/10 Official Journal of the European Communities 19. 12. 90 
ORIGINAL PROPOSAL AMENDED PROPOSAL 
Recital 13a 
(new) 
Whereas the use of information received by the auth­
orities pursuant to this Directive must be exclusively 
confined to money laundering investigations; 
Recital 14 unchanged 
Recital 14a 
(new) 
Whereas appropriate measures as well as effective and 
sufficient sanctions must be established for infringements 
of measures taken pursuant to the Directive. 
Recital 15 unchanged 
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: 
Article 1 
For the purpose of this Directive, 
— credit institution is defined in accordance with the 
first indent of Article 1 of Council Directive 
77/780/EECO; 
— financial institution means an undertaking other than 
a credit institution whose principal activity is to carry 
out one or more of the operations included in 
numbers 2 to 12 and 14 of the list annexed 
to Council Directive 89/646/EEC (2), as well as 
an insurance company duly authorized according 
to Council Directives 73/239/EEC (3) and 
79/267/EEC(4); Artikel 1 
For the purpose of this Directive, 
— credit institution means a credit institution as defined 
in accordance with the first indent of Article 1 of 
Council Directive 77/780/EEC Q) and a branch, as 
defined in indent 3 of Article 1 of that Directive, of a 
credit institution having its head office outside the 
Community; 
— financial institution means an undertaking other than 
a credit institution whose principal activity is to carry 
out one or more of the operations included in 
numbers 2 to 12 and 14 of the list annexed 
to Council Directive 89/646/EEC (2), as well as 
an insurance company duly authorized according 
to Council Directives 73/239/EEC (3) and 
79/267/EEC (4). This term shall also include 
branches of financial institutions having their head 
office outside the Community; 
(') OJ No L 322, 17. 12. 1977, p. 30. 
(2) OJ No L 386, 30. 12. 1989, p. 1. 
(>) OJ No L 228, 16. 8. 1973, p. 3. 
O OJ No L 63, 13. 3. 1979, p. 1. (') OJ No L 322, 17. 12. 1977, p. 30. 
O OJ No L 386, 30. 12. 1989, p. 1. 
(3) OJ No L 228, 16. 8. 1973, p. 3. 
(4) OJ No L 63, 13. 3. 1979, p. 1. 
19. 12. 90 Official Journal of the European Communities NoC 319/11 
ORIGINAL PROPOSAL 
money laundering means: AMENDED PROPOSAL 
— the conversion or transfer of property, knowing 
that such property is derived from a serious 
crime, for the purpose of concealing or disguising 
the illicit origin of the property or of assisting any 
person who is involved in the commission of such 
an offence or offences to evade the legal conse­
quences of his action, and unchanged 
— the concealment or disguise of the true nature, 
source, location, disposition, movement, rights 
with respect to, or ownership of property, 
knowing that such property is derived from a 
serious crime; 
property means assets of every kind, whether corporal 
or incorporal, movable or immovable, tangible or 
intangible, and legal documents or instruments 
evidencing title to or interest in such assets; unchanged 
serious crime means a crime specified in Article 3, 
paragraph 1 (a) and (c), of the United Nations 
Convention against illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs 
and Psychotropic Substances adopted on 19 
December 1988 in Vienna, terrorism and any other 
serious criminal offence (including in particular 
organized crime), connected or not with drugs, as 
defined by the Member States; unchanged 
competent authorities means the national authorities 
which are empowered by laws or regulations to 
supervise credit or financial institutions. unchanged 
Article 2 unchanged 
Article 3 
Member States shall ensure that credit and financial 
institutions require identification of their customers when 
entering into business relations or conducting trans­
actions, and in the case of doubt whether customers are 
acting on their own behalf, that these institutions take 
reasonable measures to establish the real identity of the 
persons on whose behalf a transaction is carried out or 
an account is opened. Article 3 
1. Member States shall ensure that credit and financial 
institutions require identification of their customers when 
entering into business relations or conducting trans­
actions, and in the case of doubt whether customers are 
acting on their own behalf, that these institutions take 
reasonable measures to establish the real identity of the 
persons on whose behalf a transaction is carried out or 
an account is opened. 
No C 319/12 Official Journal of the European Communities 19. 12.90 
ORIGINAL PROPOSAL 
Credit and financial institutions shall keep records of the 
identity documents required until at least five years after 
relations with their clients have ended. 
Article 5 
Member States shall ensure: 
1. That credit and financial institutions and their 
directors and employees fully cooperate with the 
relevant judicial or law enforcement authorities 
competent for criminal matters: 
— by informing these authorities, on their own 
initiative, of any facts they discover which could 
be related to a money laundering offence; 
— by furnishing these authorities with all information 
requested in the case of any criminal inquiry or 
rogatory commission on money laundering carried 
out according to the applicable legislation; AMENDED PROPOSAL 
Credit and financial institutions shall keep records of the 
identity documents required until at least five years after 
relations with their clients have ended. 
2. Credit and financial institutions shall not be obliged 
to carry out the identification requirements provided for 
in paragraph 1 when the customer in the business 
relationship or in the transaction is also a credit or 
financial institution subject to this Directive. 
3. Credit and financial institutions shall keep adequate 
written or electronic records of transactions of any kind 
to serve as evidence in any subsequent money laundering 
investigation for a minimum period of 5 years from the 
time the transaction is completed. 
Article 5 
Member States shall ensure: 
1. That credit and financial institutions and their 
directors and employees fully cooperate with the 
relevant judicial or law enforcement authorities 
competent for criminal matters: 
— by informing these authorities, on their own 
initiative, of any facts they discover which could 
be related to a money laundering offence; 
— by furnishing these authorities with all information 
requested in the case of any criminal inquiry or 
rogatory commission on money laundering carried 
out according to the applicable legislation. 
The information referred to in this paragraph shall be 
transmitted to the abovementioned authorities of the 
Member State in whose territory the institution 
forwarding the information is situated. 
This information shall be transmitted, except in 
exceptional cases, through the person or persons 
designated by the credit and financial institutions, in 
accordance with the procedures provided for in 
Article 7, paragraph 1. Article 4: unchanged 
19. 12. 90 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 319/13 
ORIGINAL PROPOSAL AMENDED PROPOSAL 
That the disclosure in good faith to the relevant 
judicial or law enforcement authorities competent for 
criminal matters by any employee or director of a 
credit or financial institution of any suspicion or belief 
that an operation is aimed at or connected to money 
laundering, shall not constitute a breach of any 
restriction on disclosure of information imposed by 
contract or by any legislative, regulatory or adminis­
trative provision, and shall not involve for such 
employees and directors any civil or penal responsi­
bility of any kind. 2. That the disclosure in good faith to the relevant 
judicial or law enforcement authorities competent for 
criminal matters by any employee or director of a 
credit or financial institution of any suspicion or belief 
that an operation is aimed at or connected to money 
laundering, shall not constitute a breach of any 
restriction on disclosure of information imposed by 
contract or by any legislative, regulatory or adminis­
trative provision, and shall not involve for such 
employees, directors or institutions any civil or penal 
responsability of any kind. 
3. Credit and financial institutions and their directors 
and employees shall not disclose to the customer 
concerned nor to other third persons that information 
has been transmitted to the authorities in accordance 
with paragraph 1 or that a money laundering investi­
gation is being carried out. 
4. Information supplied to the authorities in accordance 
with paragraph 1 may be used only in connection 
with money laundering investigations. 
Article 6: unchanged 
Article 7 
Member States shall ensure: 
1. That credit and financial institutions establish 
adequate procedures of internal control in order to 
prevent, detect and impede their engaging in oper­
ations related with money laundering. 
2. That credit and financial institutions take the appro­
priate measures so that their employees are aware of 
the provisions contained in this Directive, and that 
they also establish special training programs for their 
employees, to help them detect operations which may 
be related with money laundering as well as to 
instruct them as to how to proceed in such cases. Article 7 
Member States shall ensure: 
1. unchanged 
That credit and financial institutions take the appro­
priate measures so that their employees are aware of 
the provisions contained in this Directive, and that 
they also establish special training programmes for 
their employees, to help them detect operations which 
may be related with money laundering as well as to 
instruct them as to how to proceed in such cases. 
They shall ensure that all relevant employees 
participate in such training programmes. 
Article 8: unchanged 
Article 8a 
(new) 
Each Member State shall take appropriate measures to 
ensure the application of the provisions of this Directive 
and in particular shall establish sufficient and effective 
sanctions to be applied to infringements of the measures 
adopted to comply with this Directive. 
No C 319/14 Official Journal of the European Communities 19. 12. 90 
ORIGINAL PROPOSAL AMENDED PROPOSAL 
Article 9: unchanged 
Article 9a 
(new) 
The Commission shall, one year after 1 January 1992 
and at three-yearly intervals thereafter, draw up a report 
on the application of this Directive and submit it to the 
European Parliament and the Council 
Article 10: unchanged