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In particular, AML/CFT colleges should be set up whenever three or more competent authorities from different Member States are responsible for the AML/CFT supervision of the same credit or financial institution and its establishments, and the frequency and intensity of each AML/CFT college should be determined on a risk-sensitive basis.
Cooperation and exchange of information between competent authorities responsible for overseeing AML/CFT compliance of credit and other financial institutions is an essential part of an effective AML/CFT regime. EU AML/CFT legislation establishes an obligation for competent authorities to cooperate and exchange information, but it does not set out in detail how this should be achieved.
Recent events have illustrated that in the absence of a common framework, cooperation and information exchange between prudential and AML/CFT competent authorities for the purposes of AML/CFT supervision can sometimes be difficult. To address this, the ESAs have agreed to develop these Guidelines, which clarify the practical modalities of this process both domestically and on a cross-border basis.
As information available to AML/CFT supervisors may also be relevant for prudential supervisors and vice versa, the Guidelines propose gateways to ensure that prudential supervisors can participate as observers in AML/CFT colleges, and that information from AML/CFT college meetings is available to colleges of prudential supervisors.
Where the conditions for setting up an AML/CFT college are not met, the Guidelines propose that supervisors will continue their cooperation and information exchange on a bilateral basis and formalise this process.
Comments to the draft Guidelines can be sent by 08 February 2019. The ESAs will hold a public hearing on the draft Guidelines, which will take place at the EBA premises in London on 18 December 2018 from 14:00 to 16:30 UK time.