LoginSource: Khaleej Times
A new digital platform, ‘Know Your Customer’ (KYC), has been launched in the UAE to provide accurate, comprehensive, and confidential data for financial transactions. The new platform aims to provide a secure digital infrastructure for verifying customer identities, fostering trust in the business environment, and improving the customer experience when accessing financial and banking services. It also will offer accurate data and information to relevant authorities to enhance transparency in financial transactions and facilitate information exchange and collaboration in combating financial crimes.
The Central Bank of the UAE will oversee and regulate the operations of a new company established to manage and develop KYC. It will set the regulations under which the company conducts its activities and provides services and establish a code of conduct for data providers and users. This entity will be responsible for building and overseeing the platform, including managing the collection, storage, analysis, categorization, use, exchange, and sharing of KYC data per national cybersecurity policies and standards.
The Central Bank will also define the standards for systems that store, process, and safeguard data and specify the customer data the company can request from data providers. Breaching KYC data confidentiality regulations will result in severe penalties, including a minimum two-year prison sentence and a fine of at least Dh50,000. These penalties apply to any unauthorized disclosure of customer data or attempts to obtain KYC reports through illegal means or fraudulent information. Misuse of customer data by a public official or an employee of the platform management company is considered an aggravating factor.
“This platform is a key component of the country’s strategy to modernize its financial infrastructure, accelerate digital transformation, and establish a unified legal framework for customer identity verification. It enhances transparency, ensures compliance with financial regulations, and strengthens national efforts to combat financial crime,” the UAE Government said in a statement. By adopting cutting-edge digital solutions, the platform provides an integrated mechanism for verifying customer identities and ensuring compliance with regulations. The platform’s accurate and comprehensive data facilitate enhanced transparency in financial transactions, empowering users to make informed decisions. Furthermore, the KYC platform ensures the legal and regulated collection and use of customer data, streamlining information exchange between relevant authorities and bolstering cooperation in combating financial crime.