Resolution Amending Articles 1, 6, 11, 15, and 16 and Adding to Article 11 of the Standard for the Management of Prevention of Money, Goods, or Assets Laundering Risks and Terrorism Financing

Resolution No. CD-SIBOIF-1479-1-NOV29-2024
Dated November 29, 2024
STANDARD AMENDING ARTICLES 1, 6, 11, 15, AND 16 AND ADDING TO ARTICLE 11 OF THE STANDARD FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF PREVENTION OF THE RISKS OF MONEY LAUNDERING, GOODS OR ASSETS; AND TERRORISM FINANCING

The Board of Directors of the Superintendence of Banks and Other Financial Institutions,

CONSIDERING

I
That the Political Constitution of the Republic of Nicaragua, in its articles 24 and 27, establishes as constitutional guarantees the just demands of the common good above particular or individual interests, and the equality of all persons before the law without discrimination based on birth, nationality, political creed, race, sex, language, religion, opinion, origin, economic position, or social condition.

II
That article 9, numeral 10, of Law No. 842, "Law for the Protection of the Rights of Consumers and Users," published in La Gaceta, Official Gazette No. 129, of July 11, 2013, and its reforms contained in Law No. 1097, "Law of the Nicaraguan Legal Digest of the Subject Matter of Business, Industry, and Commerce," published in La Gaceta, Official Gazette No. 137, of July 26, 2022, establishes that the offer of goods and services must be carried out without any discrimination for political, race, sex, gender, nationality, language, disability, economic or social status, health conditions, religion, age, opinion, marital status, or any other reason. In this sense, service providers may not deny attention to requests, nor cancel contracts or transactions legitimately managed by natural or legal persons, public, private, or mixed, for the satisfaction of required or contracted goods and services, unless based on express Law, regulations or resolutions issued for such effect by the respective Regulatory Body and/or in a legally justified cause.

III
That in accordance with article 30, literal a, of Law No. 977, "Law Against Money Laundering, Terrorism Financing, and Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction," whose consolidated text was integrated into Law No. 1175, "Law of the Nicaraguan Legal Digest of the Subject Matter of Banking and Finance," published in La Gaceta, Official Gazette No. 153, of August 20, 2024 (Legal Digest Law), it is the faculty of this Superintendence, regarding the obligated subjects under its supervision and within the scope of preventing money, goods, and assets laundering from illicit activities and terrorism financing, indicated in article 9, numeral 1 of the aforementioned Law, to issue, develop, and apply standards, circulars, measures, and instructions, and to apply the corrective measures, administrative sanctions, and pecuniary sanctions corresponding according to its legal faculties.

IV
That in accordance with article 3, numerals 2, 4, 7, 12, and 13, and article 10, numerals 1, 2, 3, and 5 of Law No. 316, "Law of the Superintendence of Banks and Other Financial Institutions," contained in the Legal Digest Law, it is the attributions of this Superintendence to supervise, inspect, monitor, and audit the operation of all entities within its scope of action, corresponding to the Board of Directors of the Superintendence of Banks and Other Financial Institutions to issue general standards and impart to the institutions subject to its supervision, inspection, monitoring, and audit, the necessary instructions to remedy deficiencies or irregularities found and to adopt the measures that are within its competence to administratively sanction and correct infractions that have been committed.

In exercise of its faculties,

HAS ISSUED

The following:

Resolution No. CD-SIBOIF-1479-1-NOV29-2024
STANDARD AMENDING ARTICLES 1, 6, 11, 15, AND 16 AND ADDING TO ARTICLE 11 OF THE STANDARD FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF PREVENTION OF THE RISKS OF MONEY LAUNDERING, GOODS OR ASSETS; AND TERRORISM FINANCING

FIRST: Amend the articles: 1; 6, subsection "j"; 11, subsection "c"; 15, subsection "d", numeral "iv.e"; and 16, subsection "k", numeral "ii", of the "Standard for the Management of Prevention of the Risks of Money Laundering, Goods or Assets; and Terrorism Financing," contained in Resolution No. CD-SIBOIF-524-1-MAR5-2008, of March 5, 2008, published in La Gaceta, Official Gazette No. 63, 64, 65, 66, and 67, of April 4, 7, 8, 9, and 10, 2008, respectively, and its reforms, which shall read as follows:

"Article 1.- Scope
The Standard for the Management of Prevention of the Risks of Money Laundering, Goods or Assets; and Terrorism Financing, hereinafter referred to as the AML/CFT Standard or simply the AML/CFT Standard; is applicable, with the exceptions and particularities that it expressly establishes, to all natural and legal persons who, in accordance with legislation on anti-money laundering, terrorism financing, and financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, or by provision of special laws, are obligated subjects and are under the authorization, regulation, supervision, monitoring, and audit of the Superintendence of Banks and Other Financial Institutions, hereinafter Superintendence, and who operate, among others, in the sectors of Banks, Financial Companies, Insurance, Securities, and General Warehouses as credit auxiliaries, individually or as members of a Financial Group; all referred to as Supervised Entity (ies) for the purposes of this Standard.

Article 6.- Responsibility of the Board of Directors.
(...) j) Define and establish, within its AML/CFT Manual, an express and written, non-discriminatory policy for client acceptance and/or market segments.
(...)

Article 11.- Verification.
(...)
The Compliance Department must include policies, procedures, and requirements to verify, before or during the course of establishing the usual commercial relationship, through legal, reliable, and indisputable documents (...). In the verification process, the Supervised Entity must at least:
(...) c) Review the names of clients, beneficiaries, partners, guarantors, representatives, and/or signatories, against internal and/or external databases of publicly available risk lists or provided by competent authority or international organizations regarding persons (natural or legal) under attention or designated, known as money launderers, terrorists, or terrorism financiers, or due to being linked to organized crime. This review must be done at the start of the relationship and periodically with the frequency established by the legal framework, the competent authority, or defined in their internal policies.

Art. 15.- Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD)
(...) d) Based on international standards and best practices, on the following factors along with the variables or categories belonging to each of them, supervised entities must assign weights or scores, and combine them in the risk rating matrix of the individual AML/CFT risk level of clients, to determine the type of EDD corresponding to each level on a risk management basis for AML/CFT and in accordance with the policies, procedures, and methodologies that each entity must have in its AML/CFT SIPAR. These factors with their variables or categories are as follows:
(...) iv.- Factor: Countries, Jurisdictions, and/or Geographic Areas: The following form part of the geographic variables to be considered in this:
(...) iv.e.- Those that have been included in AML/CFT risk lists.
(...)

Article 16.- Measures of Enhanced Due Diligence.
(...) k) The Supervised Entity must also apply enhanced due diligence on clients and transactions that, originally considered of normal risk, present any of the following

circumstances:
(...) ii.- The client is included in lists of persons convicted, prosecuted, or under investigation for AML/CFT matters, by competent national authorities; or who appear in national, foreign, international, or specialized organization lists, regarding persons linked to these risks.
(...)

SECOND: Add a subsection "c. bis" to article 11 of the "Standard for the Management of Prevention of the Risks of Money Laundering, Goods or Assets; and Terrorism Financing," contained in Resolution No. CD-SIBOIF-524-1-MAR5-2008, of March 5, 2008, published in La Gaceta, Official Gazette No. 63, 64, 65, 66, and 67, of April 4, 7, 8, 9, and 10, 2008, respectively, and its reforms, which shall read as follows:

Article 11.- Verification.
"c. bis Establish enhanced due diligence measures for clients designated in lists and report them to the Financial Analysis Unit (UAF). It must be verified that, for clients designated in lists, the provision of international financial services does not put their international commercial relationships at risk. In the case of clients designated as money launderers, terrorists, or terrorism financiers, or due to being linked to organized crime, financial institutions will determine the convenience of continuing or not commercial relationships with these."

THIRD: This standard will enter into force upon its notification, without prejudice to its subsequent publication in La Gaceta, Official Gazette.

(F) Illegible Magaly María Sáenz Ulloa (F) Illegible (Luis Ángel Montenegro E) (F) Illegible Fausto Reyes (F) Illegible (Silvio Moisés Casco Marenco) (F) Illegible (Ervin Antonio Vargas Pérez) (f) Illegible Secretary.
SAÚL CASTELLÓN TÓRREZ
Ad Hoc Secretary SIBOIF Board of Directors