Recital 159

(159) Obliged entities should obtain and hold adequate and accurate information on the beneficial ownership and control of legal persons. As bearer shares accord ownership to the person who possesses the bearer share certificate, they allow the beneficial owner to remain anonymous. To ensure that such shares are not misused for money laundering or terrorist financing purposes, companies — other than those with listed securities on a regulated market or whose shares are issued as intermediated securities — should convert all existing bearer shares into registered shares, immobilise them, or deposit them with a financial institution. In addition, bearer share warrants should only be permitted in intermediated form.

← Recital 158 · All articles · Recital 160 →

Source: EUR-Lex CELLAR · retrieved 2026-09-04 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.