The German Parliament has passed new regulations onto the upper house of Parliament, the Bundesrat. Rules involving anti-money laundering for auction houses, notaries, gold merchants, real estate agents, and more are planned to bring Germany in line with EU directives.
Last year, Germany’s government Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) found a total of 77,252 cases of money laundering, with about 3,800 in the real estate sector. Under these new rules, notaries and real estate agents would have to report any suspected money laundering cases, including any lease of more than €10,000 per month. Art & precious metal dealers, auction houses, and intermediaries will be required to report suspicious activity of more than €2,000 under the new rules. Currently, these entities only have to file a report if the activity is €10,000 or more.
Some worry that anti-money laundering for auction houses, real estate, and art dealers will be extremely costly, but the EU is moving forward with legislation, like 5AMLD, and it seems Germany is due to follow.
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