New anti-money laundering (AML) legislation
On 10th January 2020, new EU anti-money laundering measures affecting all art dealers, galleries and their clients took effect. This is an EU-wide legislation obliging both BASTIAN Berlin and London regardless of the terms of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.
Under the new rules, BASTIAN will have to implement further client screening procedures to mitigate the risks of money-laundering occurring in the course of our business, including the risks of being paid with illegally obtained funds. As such, we are now legally obliged to carry out identification and screening checks not only on future clients, but also on all existing clients before making a purchase.
This means that before any sale we will have to ask you to document your identity, date of birth, nationality and residency via a copy of your passport, driving license or national ID card. Businesses will be asked to provide their company details such as evidence of incorporation, identity of their directors and the ultimate beneficial owners. Accordingly, agents must provide documentation proving their own identity and that of the ultimate buyer.
Furthermore, the law requires us to refuse payments from a bank account that is not held in the name of the person or entity named on the invoice if we have not authorised a third party payment beforehand after carrying out the necessary screening of that party.
We will endeavour to make this new process as quick and efficient as possible for all new and existing clients whilst complying fully with the new laws. We would like to thank you in advance for your patience while we carry out these mandatory checks before the completion of any sale. In the unfortunate event that the information provided doesn’t meet with these new legal requirements, BASTIAN cannot complete the sale.
All client information provided to us in the course of business will always remain secure and confidential.