The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) hereby announces that it has issued a preliminary appeal decision pursuant to Article 14 para. 1 of the Act on Administrative Court Procedures (VwGVG) regarding the appeal by EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT against the FMA’s administrative decision dated 16.01.2024 to establish legal compliance pursuant to Article 31 para. 1 of the Financial Markets Anti-Money Laundering Act (FM-GwG).
Within the scope of the appeal procedure the FMA determined that the sever legal breaches in the area of the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing, which led to the initial administrative decision, continue to exist and have not been remedied. All points of the ruling in the original administrative decision therefore remain unchanged in the preliminary appeal decision. The preliminary appeal decision in relation to EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT’s appeal is not legally final.
Initial notice of 18.01.2024
FMA imposes supervisory measure against EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT for breaches of duty in the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing (FM-GwG)
The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) hereby announces that an administrative decision has been issued towards EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT (EURAM) instructing it to establish legal compliance pursuant to Article 31 para. 1 of the Financial Markets Anti-Money Laundering Act (FM-GwG; Finanzmarkt-Geldwäschegesetz) for breaches against the provisions of the FM-GwG. EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT has failed to comply with the requirements set out in the FM-GwG to draw up a risk assessment at company level (Article 4 paras. 1 and 2 FM-GwG ) as well as a risk assessment at individual customer level (Article 6 para. 5 FM-GwG ) and based on this also has failed to apply legal due diligence obligations in a risk-based manner, both with regard to establishing internal systems as well as in individual cases.
Until legal compliance has been duly established, EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT is prohibited from concluding business relationships of any kind with new customers as well as the conclusion of new contracts or new products/services within the scope of existing business relationships (prohibition of conducting new business). In addition, EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT has been instructed to check separately for all customers and transactions that all legal provisions set out in the FM-GwG are duly observed prior to executing any kind of transaction for existing customers (approval of transactions).
The administrative decision issued to EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT instructing that legal compliance is to be established is not legally final.
Update: 13.02.2024
EUROPEAN AMERICAN INVESTMENT BANK AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT has submitted an appeal against the FMA’s administrative decision to the Federal Administrative Court (BVwG; Bundesverwaltungsgericht).