Source: AMLA final report draft
- Anti-money laundering
AMLR supplemental acts
- RTS on customer due diligence
Article 15 Identification and verification obligations for collective investment undertakings
This is a draft act
This text has been parsed from the AMLA final report draft as published on 30 September 2026. While we run a suite of validations, the automated parsing can result in errors. Also, before it is finally adopted by the Commission, its wording, numbering and references may change, and entire articles might be removed or added.
Earlier drafts: AMLA consultation paper draft (9 February 2026)
Summary What does Article 15 of the RTS on customer due diligence say?
This article provides a specific mechanism for collective investment undertakings that distribute shares or units through intermediary credit or financial institutions.
Rather than applying customer due diligence directly to final investors, a collective investment undertaking can satisfy its obligations under Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 by instead ensuring that the intermediary institution meets a defined set of conditions.
This is a conditional carve-out, not an unconditional exemption, as the collective investment undertaking retains accountability and must be able to prove compliance upon request from its supervisory authority.
Important points:
- Collective investment undertakings distributing via intermediary credit or financial institutions must verify that those institutions are subject to AML/CFT obligations, effectively supervised, not high risk, and applying robust due diligence to their own customers.
- Rely on this mechanism only if all four conditions are met simultaneously — falling short on any one of them means the carve-out cannot be used.
- Collective investment undertakings are required to be able to demonstrate to their supervisory authority, on request, that all conditions have been satisfied.
Springlex's summary of the article is a reading aid, not a substitute for the legal text.
When a collective investment undertaking distributes its shares or units through another credit institution or financial institution that acts in its own name but on behalf or for the benefit of one or more final investors, it may fulfil the requirement under Article 20(1), point (h), of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 by ensuring that the following conditions are met:
the credit institution or financial institution is subject to AML/CFT obligations in a Member State or in a third country that has AML/CFT requirements that are at least equivalent to those stipulated by Regulation (EU) 2024/1624;
the credit institution or financial institution is effectively supervised for compliance with obligations as provided for in point (a);
the risk associated with the relationship with the credit or financial institution is not high; and
the collective investment undertaking is satisfied that the credit institution or financial institution applies robust and risk-sensitive AML/CFT controls, including customer due diligence measures, to its own customers, which can be the final investors and its customers’ beneficial owners.
A collective investment undertaking that relies on this Article shall be able to demonstrate to its supervisory authority, upon request by such authority, that the conditions under points (a) to (d) of the first paragraph have been complied with.
Springlex and this text is meant purely as a documentation tool and has no legal effect. No liability is assumed for its content. The authentic version of this act is the one published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Definition
crypto-asset services
Definition
supervisor
Definition
financial mixed activity holding company
Definition
crypto-asset service provider
Definition
credit institution
- a credit institution as defined in Article 4(1), point (1), of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013;
- a branch of a credit institution, as defined in Article 4(1), point (17), of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013, when located in the Union, whether its head office is located in a Member State or in a third country;
Definition
crypto-asset
Definition
property
Definition
express trust
Definition
legal arrangement
Definition
financial institution
- an undertaking other than a credit institution or an investment firm, which carries out one or more of the activities listed in points (2) to (12), (14) and (15) of Annex I to Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(32), including the activities of currency exchange offices (bureaux de change), but excluding the activities referred to in point (8) of Annex I to Directive (EU) 2015/2366, or an undertaking the principal activity of which is to acquire holdings, including a financial holding company, a mixed financial holding company and a financial mixed activity holding company;
- an insurance undertaking as defined in Article 13, point (1), of Directive 2009/138/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(33), insofar as it carries out life or other investment-related assurance activities covered by that Directive, including insurance holding companies and mixed-activity insurance holding companies as defined, respectively, in Article 212(1), points (f) and (g), of Directive 2009/138/EC;
- an insurance intermediary as defined in Article 2(1), point (3), of Directive (EU) 2016/97 where it acts with respect to life insurance and other investment-related insurance services, with the exception of an insurance intermediary that does not collect premiums or amounts intended for the customer and which acts under the responsibility of one or more insurance undertakings or intermediaries for the products which concern them respectively;
- an investment firm as defined in Article 4(1), point (1), of Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(34);
- a collective investment undertaking, in particular:
- an undertaking for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) as defined in Article 1(2) of Directive 2009/65/EC and its management company as defined in Article 2(1), point (b), of that Directive or an investment company authorised in accordance with that Directive and which has not designated a management company, that makes available for purchase units of UCITS in the Union;
- an alternative investment fund as defined in Article 4(1), point (a), of Directive 2011/61/EU and its alternative investment fund manager as defined in Article 4(1), point (b), of that Directive that fall within the scope set out in Article 2 of that Directive;
- a central securities depository as defined in Article 2(1), point (1), of Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council(35);
- a creditor as defined in Article 4, point (2), of Directive 2014/17/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council(36) and in Article 3, point (b), of Directive 2008/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council(37);
- a credit intermediary as defined in Article 4, point (5), of Directive 2014/17/EU and in Article 3, point (f), of Directive 2008/48/EC, when holding the funds as defined in Article 4, point (25), of Directive (EU) 2015/2366 in connection with the credit agreement, with the exception of the credit intermediary carrying out activities under the responsibility of one or more creditors or credit intermediaries;
- a crypto-asset service provider;
- a branch of a financial institution referred to in points (a) to (i), when located in the Union, whether its head office is located in a Member State or in a third country;
Definition
self-regulatory body
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third country
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funds
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beneficial owner
Definition
supervisory authority