Prepaid Financial Services is the first electronic money institution sanctioned by a
fine for shortcomings in the fight against money laundering in France.
The European passport has given wings to electronic money institutions. But this sesame
does not exempt from compliance with anti-money laundering rules these competitors of banks and
payment already established. Prepaid Financial Services learned this the hard way in France. The Supervisory Authority
prudential and resolution (ACPR) imposed a reprimand and a fine of one million euros on the company
British, in a decision of September 24 published on its website. It's the second time
only that the French regulator sanctions an electronic money institution, after the simple
reprimand which another British, Transaction Services International (ex-Ticket Surf) received in July
International).
In the case of Prepaid Financial Services, the ACPR considers that this prepaid card company,
marketed in particular at tobacconists, "did not respect its obligations of verification of
the identity and knowledge of the customers holding the electronic money that it issues" and that "the
information collected on the method of payment for card reloading operations was
also insufficient", specifies the text of the decision.
Prepaid Financial also failed in its 'enhanced review', 'declaration of
suspicions”, information from Tracfin (in 72 suspicious files) and in its assets freezing system. The
company had been subject to an audit of its anti- money laundering and anti-money laundering system
financing of terrorism (LCB-FT) between the end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018. The investigation notably identified a client
who carried out, with complete impunity, "422 operations to load his card with up to three coupons per day
on an amount greater than 84,000 euros in eight months" and, in parallel, "withdrawals of hopes for a
cumulative amount of approximately 7,000 euros and more than 50,000 euros of purchase from a company”.
The company, headquartered in London, has an AML-CFT service in Ireland and a single
branch in France. It “issues electronic money and provides blank cards which it delegates
marketing to program managers who adapt the usage characteristics of
cards sold under their brand according to their target customers,” explains the ACPR. Prepaid edits
in particular the Veritas MasterCard prepaid cards, marketed in France.