As part of the proposed project, amendments are planned in 15 resolutions of the Board of the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic, including rules related to money transfers, remote banking services, as well as the regulation of payment organizations and payment system operators, electronic money, financial marketplaces, and virtual assets.
According to the new proposals, the terminology in the existing acts of the National Bank will be standardized in accordance with the recently adopted law "On Counteracting the Financing of Criminal Activities and the Legalization (Laundering) of Criminal Income" (CCFCA/LCI). For example, the term "financing of terrorist activities" will be replaced with the broader "financing of criminal activities," and the use of the abbreviation CCFCA/LCI will also be clarified.
Requirements for the identification and verification of clients, as well as for beneficial owners of accounts, will also be specified, which includes accounting for and storing information about money transfers, transactions with electronic wallets, bank cards, and QR payments.
Banking institutions and payment organizations, including their agents, are required to retain information on transactions and client verification for at least five years. This is necessary to ensure the possibility of restoring the transaction chain and providing information upon request from supervisory and law enforcement agencies.
The National Bank will also gain the authority to refuse the registration of an operator of an international money transfer system if such an operator is registered in an offshore zone or in a country that is included in the list of high-risk countries compiled by financial intelligence. The changes also pertain to the application of sanctions lists and financial measures against clients and counterparties from such countries.
Requirements for internal controls in payment organizations and payment system operators will also be tightened. They must now include risk assessment, ongoing monitoring of transactions, rules for working with public officials, staff training, and the extension of these procedures to agents and sub-agents.
