DysPEPsia - discomfort around banking Politically Exposed Persons

Complaints by politicians about being expelled by banks, or even unable to open an account in the first place, have set a review by the Financial Conduct Authority in motion. Denis O'Connor examines the regulator's 2017 Guidance on the issue.

Denis O'Connoris a fellow of both the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales and the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment. He was a member of the British Bankers' Association Money Laundering Committee from 2003-10 and a member of the Joint Money Laundering Steering Group's board and editorial panel between 2010 and 2016. He has been a frequent speaker at industry conferences on financial crime issues, both in the United Kingdom and abroad.

Against the background of the recent media storm surrounding the case of Coutts exiting its banking relationship with Nigel Farage, the former leader of the Brexit Party, Compliance Monitor readers may wish to review the 2017 Guidance on Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) [1] issued by the Financial Conduct Authority. The controversy incited the resignations of Peter Flavel, Coutts' chief executive officer, as well as Dame Alison Rose, his counterpart at Coutts' parent company NatWest Bank. The current reviews by the United Kingdom Government and the regulator may require firms to revise their PEP systems and controls.