“An important contribution to AMLA’s funding will come from the EU budget”, said the European Commissioner for Financial Services, Mairead McGuinness, at European Court of Auditors seminar on the new EU supervisory model for anti-money laundering and combating terrorist financing on Friday, 16 September.
In her opening speech, the Commissioner presented the anti-money laundering package and gave an update on its progress. She detailed at length the characteristics of the future European authority (AMLA), including its coordinating role in the non-financial sector, and the cooperation and interaction between the AMLA and national supervisors (see EUROPE 12982/17).
She also stressed the role that the European Commission will play once the AMLA is in place. The European institution will be responsible, for example, for transposing into legislation, by means of delegated acts, the regulatory technical standards that the AMLA will develop and which will complement the future regulation.
“The Commission will also draft the methodology to set the fees that will help pay for European supervision”, Ms McGuinness said. The question of the financing of the new authority had in fact been the subject of debate in the European Parliament, with MEPs fearing that its financial allocation would be insufficient (see EUROPE 12972/23).
The Commission will also have a role to play in the governance of AMLA, as it will sit on both the Executive Board and the General Council.
“This gives the Commission a slightly different level of control compared to the European Supervisory Authority”, the Commissioner stressed.
In terms of timing, the Commission expects the AMLA to start in 2024, to be fully staffed in 2025 and to start direct supervision in 2026. (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)