Anti-Money Laundering Regulations (2025 Revision)

Summary

This document is the 2025 Revision of the Cayman Islands' Anti-Money Laundering Regulations, made under the Proceeds of Crime Act. It consolidates all amendments up to April 2024 into a single restated text as at 31 December 2024, replacing the prior 2023 Revision. The Regulations set out the core AML/CFT/CPF (anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing and counter-proliferation financing) framework applicable to financial service providers and, via Part 12A, designated non-financial businesses and professions (DNFBPs) operating in or from the Cayman Islands.

The Regulations cover the full lifecycle of AML compliance, addressing the following areas:

• Compliance programme: Establishing a compliance programme, appointing an AML Compliance Officer and a Money Laundering Reporting Officer.
• Risk assessments: Conducting risk assessments, including of countries/geographic areas and new products/technologies.
• Customer due diligence: Performing customer due diligence (standard, simplified and enhanced).
• Politically exposed persons: Identifying and monitoring politically exposed persons.
• Record-keeping and reporting: Record-keeping, and internal and external suspicious activity reporting.
• Wire transfers: Specific identification and record-keeping rules for wire transfers under Part 10.
• Virtual asset transfers: Separate identification and record-keeping rules for transfers of virtual assets under Part 10A, reflecting obligations for virtual asset service providers.
• Shell banks and correspondent banking: Addressing shell banks, correspondent banking, and information-sharing and disclosure duties.
• DNFBP designation and registration: A detailed regime for designation and registration of DNFBPs and supervisory authority duties.
• Fines and appeals: An administrative fines and appeals framework, including fine categories set out in Schedule 2 and appeal rights to the Grand Court.

Because this is a consolidated revision rather than new substantive amending legislation, it does not itself introduce new deadlines beyond those already embedded in the operative provisions (most of which are in the elided body of the text and could not be independently verified from the excerpts reviewed). Compliance officers should treat this as the current authoritative, in-force text of the AML Regulations and cross-check specific procedural deadlines (e.g., for registration, reporting, or fine appeals) against the full regulation text via the source PDF.

Key obligations

• Establish and maintain a compliance programme, systems and training to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing
• Appoint an Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer and a Money Laundering Reporting Officer with defined duties
• Conduct and document risk assessments of customers, products, delivery mechanisms, new technologies, and countries/geographic areas, applying a risk-based approach
• Perform customer due diligence (standard, simplified or enhanced as applicable) before or during establishment of business relationships, including for life insurance beneficiaries and politically exposed persons
• Maintain records of customer identification, transactions and due diligence in accordance with record-keeping procedures
• File suspicious activity reports when required and maintain internal reporting procedures
• Comply with identification and record-keeping requirements for wire transfers, including obligations of payment service providers and handling of transfers with missing/incomplete payer information
• Comply with identification and record-keeping requirements for transfers of virtual assets, including obligations of originating and beneficiary virtual asset service providers and suspicious transfer reporting
• Avoid establishing or continuing relationships with shell banks and apply enhanced scrutiny to correspondent banking and payable-through account arrangements
• DNFBPs must register with their designated Supervisory Authority, allow site visits, notify the Supervisory Authority as required, and respond to information requests
• Supervisory Authorities must maintain a DNFBP register, submit annual reports, and may impose administrative fines for breaches of prescribed provisions

Applies to

financial service providers, designated non-financial businesses and professions (DNFBPs), virtual asset service providers, banks, correspondent banks, insurance companies (life insurance, pension fund management, tontines, capital redemption contracts), payment service providers, supervisory authorities

Related documents

• This document replaces Anti-Money Laundering (Amendment) Regulations, 2024 (SL 8 of 2024)
• Anti-Money Laundering (Amendment) Regulations, 2024 (SL 8 of 2024) amends this document