Normative Compliance 1

Cabecera Banc de Sabadell

Banco Sabadell group regulatory compliance policy

Regulatory compliance, which forms part of the Group’s corporate culture and reinforces the required levels of honesty and professional responsibility, is regarded as the action of understanding, observing, preventing and carrying out its activity in accordance with the applicable laws, regulations, internal rules and ethical codes in order to mitigate the risk of incurring sanctions, fines and financial and/or reputational losses.

The Group’s Regulatory Compliance Policy establishes the principles and critical management parameters applicable in matters of regulatory compliance and the regime applicable to the Regulatory Compliance function at Banco Sabadell group, as well as the procedures that detail the execution guidelines for compliance with the principles contained in the Policy.

Money Laundering Prevention

Banco Sabadell has set up a global policy to ensure strict compliance with current legal regulations and with the recommendations put forward both by the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF) and by the Spanish Supervisory Body for the Prevention of Money Laundering in Spain.

 

The main objective of Banco Sabadell’s anti-money laundering policy is to prevent the use of our commercial network for any activities related to Money Laundering and is based on the following points:

 

- The identification and knowledge of customers and their financial and economic activities.  

- The existence of an Internal Control Authority and active communication.  

- Written internal procedures with specific profiles.  

- The development of the culture of prevention among all the employees of Banco Sabadell through specific training activities and regular reminders.  

- The detection of suspicious transactions by means of a software tool developed in collaboration with a specialised company.  

- Reporting to the competent authorities according to procedures established by the Regulator at each given moment.

 

For any query you may have regarding this subject,  please contact us at the following e-mail address: 0901CN@bancsabadell.com.

Anti-Corruption Policy

Banco Sabadell Group, whose parent company Banco Sabadell is a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact, the principles of which include working against corruption in all its forms, has adopted an Anti-Corruption Policy applicable to all the Group’s activities as part of its ethical commitment and zero tolerance of criminal conduct in general and acts of corruption in particular. Its aim is to establish the principles governing the anti-corruption activities of the companies forming part of the Group, as well as the applicable procedures, tools and controls.

Corporate Crime Prevention

Banco Sabadell S.A. has adopted an organizational and crime risk management model, described on the Corporate Crime Prevention Policy, published on its extracted version, and de Catalogue of Crimes Applicable to Legal Entities. The objective of this Policy is to establish the applicable principles, critical management parameters, governance structure, roles and responsibilities, procedures, tools and controls relating to the prevention of corporate crime, and to ratify the firm commitment of the Institution to abide by these rules and ethical standards and, in particular, the resolve to implement standards and controls to minimise the commission of crimes and to confirm the complete and absolute intolerance of any inadequate behaviour.

USA Patriot Act

The events that took place in 2001 altered institutional relations throughout the world and this led to the United States passing the law “International Money Laundering Abatement and Counter Terrorist Financing Act” which was aimed at preventing money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

 

In accordance with this document, North American financial institutions are required to obtain certain information about foreign banks with whom they hold correspondent accounts.

In compliance with this requirement, a Certification has been created. This can be used by every financial institution that requires it. The certification is to be found in PDF format at the foot of this page.

 

If you have any queries regarding these documents, please contact us at the following e-mail address: 0901CN@bancsabadell.com.

MiFID

The new Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), in force since January 3rd 2018, aims to increase transparency and improve the protection of customers in the provision of investment services.


For this purpose, we provide general information that we believe may be of interest to you.

Within the framework of the MiFID regulation and in compliance with the obligations contained in article 3 of the Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/576 of the Commission of June 8th, 2016 regarding the five main execution venues used in the provision of investment services and the quality of execution obtained, the following document provides the identification of such centres alongside the information required by this legal corpus.

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (pdf). RTS 28 - 2019. (Spanish version)

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (csv). RTS 28 - 2019. (Spanish version)

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (pdf). RTS 28 - 2020. (Spanish version)

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (csv). RTS 28 - 2020. (Spanish version)

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (pdf). RTS 28 - 2021. (Spanish version)

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (csv). RTS 28 - 2021. (Spanish version)

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (pdf). RTS 28 - 2022. (Spanish version)

 

Operational & quality data in the five main execution centres (csv). RTS 28 - 2022. (Spanish version)

 

Banco Sabadell, Systematic Internaliser - Quarterly information on the quality of execution of operations. Q3-2020 (xml). (Spanish version)

 

Banco Sabadell, Systematic Internaliser - Quarterly information on the quality of execution of operations. Q4-2020 (xml). (Spanish version)

FATCA

FATCA is the acronym of Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, a U.S. legislation whose aim is to avoid tax fraud by taxpayers in the U.S. (hereafter, “U.S. persons”) on income obtained outside its frontiers. The legislation is worldwide in scope and came into force on 1 January 2013.

 

On 14th May 2013 Spain signed an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the United States to facilitate the introduction of FATCA in Spain. Under this agreement all financial institutions are required to send information to the Spanish Tax Agency on certain US citizens or residents, certain US companies, as well as certain Spanish companies which have US citizens or residents owning >25% of shareholding structure.

 

The entities of Group Banco de Sabadell undertake to cooperate with ensuring compliance with FATCA regulations, and they have registered as participating FATCA financial entities with the IRS (Internal Revenue Service), federal agency of the Government of the United States, which is responsible for tax collection and ensuring compliance with tax law.


Frequently asked questions FATCA Natural Persons

We would like to answer the following questions in order to clear up the most common doubts that you may have about FATCA regulations:

1. What is FATCA and what does it set out to do?

FACTA is the acronym of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.

This is North-American legislation with worldwide scope that sets out to prevent tax fraud by United States taxpayers, both natural persons (US persons) and legal persons (US Entities) for income obtained beyond its borders. It affects both Natural and Legal Persons.

On 14th May 2013 Spain signed an Inter-governmental Agreement (IGA) with the United States to facilitate the introduction of FATCA. This agreement came into force on 1st July 2014.

2. What persons are US Persons?

All those who meet any of the following requisites:


1. North-American citizens, even when they do not reside in the USA.

2. Persons with North-American or double nationality, one of these being North-American nationality.

3. Persons with a U.S. passport.

4. Persons born in the USA, unless they have expressly relinquished this nationality.

5. Permanent and temporary residents in the USA.

3. What are the main obligations stemming from FATCA for Financial Institutions with regard to their customers?

As a financial institution having you as its customer, we are obliged:

  • To identify North-American customers in accordance with the procedures established in FATCA regulations.
  • To annually give the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT) the information on financial accounts of customers identified as US Persons. Later on the AEAT has to send this information to the North-American tax agency (IRS).

All financial institutions located in Spanish territory are covered by this rule.

4. Which FATCA form must I fill in?

If you are a US Person: Form W-9

If you are not a US Person: Form W-8BEN

5. What happens if the data on my nationality or residence is not correct, or if my personal circumstances have changed, and I have been wrongly considered a US Person?

Kindly get in touch with our customer care service on free phone number 900 120 126 or with your bank branch to correct any incorrect data.

Depending on the change of circumstances that you inform us of, it may be necessary to sign form FATCA W-BBEN to state that you are not a US Person and to send us certain supporting documents. We will inform you whether this step is necessary or not.

6. What is the TIN?

This is the Tax Identification Number, which is the federal taxpayers’ identification number in the U.S.A.. For natural persons, this is the SSN (Social Security Number). If you have to fill in form W-9 but you do not yet have a TIN, put “Applied For” in the space reserved for the TIN.

As from 1-1-2017 it will be compulsory for US Persons to have a TIN.

7. May I have a copy of the FATCA form?

We would indeed advise you to keep a copy of the form that you send to us.

8. What products/accounts are affected by FATCA?

Basically the ones in which the customer has been able to obtain some kind of financial income through the investments made: Sight Accounts, Term Accounts, Securities Custody Accounts, Investment Funds, Life- Savings Insurance policies...

9. What happens if I have a joint account with a person classified as a US Person?

FATCA considers each holder as the owner of the whole account. In the event of one or more account holders being considered US Persons, the AEAT tax agency will be informed of the entire balance of this account for each of the US Persons.

10. What happens if I refuse to fill in the FATCA form for my situation?

The law obliges Financial Institutions to consider the customer recalcitrant and to declare their accounts to the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT), which will later send this information to the North-American IRS.


The content of this document will provide you with general information about FATCA. If you require specialised tax advice we would advise you to consult your tax consultant.





Frequently asked questions FATCA Legal Persons

We would like to answer the following questions in order to clear up the most common doubts that you may have about FATCA regulations:

1. What is FATCA and what does it set out to do?

FACTA is the acronym of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.

This is North-American legislation with worldwide scope that sets out to prevent tax fraud by United States taxpayers, both natural persons (US persons) and legal persons (US Entities) for income obtained beyond its borders. It affects both Natural and Legal Persons.

On 14th May 2013 Spain signed an Inter-governmental Agreement (IGA) with the United States to facilitate the introduction of FATCA. This agreement came into force on 1st July 2014.

2. What companies are US Entities?

All those that meet any of the following requisites:


1. Companies incorporated in the USA.

2. Companies in which one or several US persons have holdings, controlling said company. A shareholder is considered to have control when he or she is the direct or indirect owner of over 25% of the shares.

3. What companies have to fill in FATCA forms? If my company is not American or does not have United States shareholders, why do I have to fill in a FATCA form?

FATCA regulations oblige us to require all companies to sign a FATCA form in which they accredit this status, whether these are US Entities (North-American companies or with controlling North-American shareholders) or not.

4. Which FATCA form must I fill in?

If yours is a North-American company: Form W-9

If yours is not a North-American company: Form W-8BEN-E

5. What is the TIN?

This is the Tax Identification Number, which is the federal taxpayers’ identification number in the U.S.A.. For legal persons, this is the EIN (Employer Identification Number).

If you have to fill in form W-9 but you do not yet have a TIN, put “Applied For” in the space reserved for the TIN.

6. What must I answer in the W-8BEN-E form to the question in which I am asked to classify my company as Active or Passive?

  • Active companies: These are the ones complying with any of the options of Schedule II included in the form itself. The criterion of greatest use for you to classify your company is nevertheless the one stated in letter “a”, by means of which Active companies are considered to be all the companies which obtain most of their income from their commercial business. To do this they have to meet the following two requisites:

    - For under 50% of the gross revenue generated by the company to be passive, i.e., not to stem from its own business activity but from other concepts such as rent through leasing, financial interest, etc.

    - For under 50% of the company’s assets to generate passive income, or for their purpose to be generating passive income.

  • Passive Companies: The ones that cannot be classified as Active.

    Should you have any doubts, you can opt for describing your company as Passive, and state whether or not this has North-American shareholders holding control of this (> 25% of shareholding structure).

7. What companies will the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT) be sent information about?

Only about North-American companies, and also those which in spite of not being North-American are Passive and also have controlling American shareholders directly or indirectly holding control over these.

8. What implications are there to my company’s being classified as Active or Passive?

  • In the event of your company not having North-American controlling shareholders, this classification does not have any consequences, as the only information sent to the AEAT tax agency will be on companies classified as Passive which also have North-American citizens or residents directly or indirectly holding control over these.
  • In the event of your company having North-American controlling shareholders, FATCA classification does indeed entail consequences, since if this is a Passive company your information will be sent to the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT).

9. May I have a copy of the FATCA form?

We would indeed advise you to keep a copy of the form that you send to us.

10. What happens if I refuse to fill in the FATCA form for my situation?

The law obliges Financial Institutions to consider the customer recalcitrant and to declare their accounts to the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT), which will later send this information to the North-American IRS.

11. What are the main obligations stemming from FATCA for Financial Institutions with regard to their customers?

  • To identify North-American customers in accordance with the procedures established in FATCA regulations.
  • To annually give the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT) the information on financial accounts of customers identified as North-American companies and non-American companies classified as Passive and which also have US Persons (citizens or residents) holding control over these. Later on the Spanish AEAT has to send this information to the Nort-American tax agency (IRS).

All financial institutions located in Spanish territory are covered by this norm.

12. What are the products / accounts affected by FATCA?

Basically, those in which the client has been able to obtain some type of financial return for the investments made: demand accounts, time deposits, securities custody contracts, investment funds, life-saving insurance...


The content of this document provides generic information about FATCA. If you require specialized tax advice, we suggest you consult your tax advisor.





FATCA and Group Banco Sabadell

The entities of Group Banco de Sabadell undertake to cooperate with ensuring compliance with FATCA regulations, and they have registered as FATCA participating financial entities with the IRS (Internal Revenue Service), federal agency of the Government of the United States, which is responsible for tax collection and ensuring compliance with tax laws.

 

The following GIINs (Global Intermediary Identification Numbers) assigned to our entities are:

 
Empresa Grupo BS País GIIN
Banc Sabadell Spain 6P48A8.00000.LE.724
Banc Sabadell - Paris France 6P48A8.00000.BR.250
Banc Sabadell - London England 6P48A8.00000.BR.826
Banc Sabadell - Casablanca Morocco 6P48A8.00000.BR.504
Banc Sabadell - Lisbon Portugal 6P48A8.00000.BR.620

CRS

CRS stands for Common Reporting Standard.

 

It is a system of automatic exchange of tax information between countries promoted by various international bodies, such as the European Union (EU), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the G-8 and G-20.

 

Financial institutions of adhered countries will inform their tax administrations about the income, payments and balances of the taxpayers of each country adhered to this system. Each partner country’s tax administration will send this information to the other associated tax administrations, which will enable the Treasury in each country to have at its disposal periodic and automatic tax information about income, payments and balances of its taxpayers, even if they have their accounts in financial institutions located abroad.

The Royal Decree 1021/2015 was published in Spain on 13 November 2015, which establishes the obligation to identify the residence of the individuals who hold or control certain financial accounts and to report on this regard. These obligations came into force on 1 January 2016.

 

All of Spain’s financial institutions are obliged to comply with this regulation.

 

The list of countries adhered to this information sharing standard can be found here: Download


Frequently asked questions CRS

Below, we have compiled a list of the most frequently asked questions concerning CRS, with the objective of clarifying such questions:

1. What is CRS and what is its purpose?

CRS is the acronym for Common Reporting Standard. CRS is a global regulation, the purpose of which is to prevent tax evasion being committed by taxpayers on the income they have received outside of their tax country. CRS is based on FATCA regulations and its implementation is backed by several international organisations such as the European Union, the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), G-8 and G-20.

The CRS system is a system for the automatic exchange of tax information between countries. The system allows tax agencies of member countries to regularly and automatically obtain tax information on income, payments and balances of tax payers identified as residents, or on financial accounts held with financial institutions located abroad. CRS affects both natural and legal persons.

On 13 November Royal Decree 1021/2015 was published in Spain, setting forth the obligation to identify the tax residence of those persons who hold or control certain financial accounts, and to provide information regarding these accounts. These obligations entered into force on 1 January 2016.

2. Which countries are included in the automatic exchange of information?

You can view the full list of countries at Order HAP/1695/2016.

You can access further information through the following link: http://www.oecd.org/tax/transparency/AEOI-commitments.pdf

3. What are the main obligations deriving from CRS regarding the relationships between financial institutions and their clients?

Identify and verify clients and reportable accounts in accordance with the procedures established in the regulation, and on an annual basis, notify the State Tax Administration Agency of information relating to all financial acounts when the account holders or the controlling persons of the accounts are tax residents in any country or jurisdiction which adheres to the CRS.

4. Who is affected by CRS?

The persons affected by CRS are those who are tax residents in countries which adhere to CRS, who are the holders or controlling persons of contracts in which the client may have obtained financial returns for the investments they have carried out: sight accounts, term deposits, securities custody contracts, investment funds, life-savings insurance...

5. Where is the tax residence information obtained from?

This information is obtained from a statement signed by the customer, which is known as Relationship Agreement.

In the case of customers who have not signed this statement, their tax residence is detected based on the following personal information:


a) Identification of the account holder as a resident in a different country or jurisdiction.

b) Postal address or current address, including a post-office box in a different country or jurisdiction.

c) One, or more than one, telephone number(s) in a different country or jurisdiction and no telephone number in Spain.

d) Standing orders, except for those relating to deposit accounts, transfer of funds to an account opened in a different country or jurisdiction.

e) Valid power of attorney or authorisation of signature in favour of a person who is domiciled in a different country or jurisdiction.

f) Instructions for the retention of correspondence, or an address for the receipt of correspondence in a different country or jurisidction in the case that the financial institution did not have any other address listed in its records for the account holder.

6. If the tax country/ies stated on the letter are correct do I still need to contact my local branch?

You do not need to contact your local branch if the tax country/ies are correct, as in this case the information held by Banco Sabadell is correct.

You only need to contact your local branch in the case that the tax country/ies are not correct. In this case, you would need to visit your local branch to complete and sign a Relationship Agreement, correctly stating the tax country in which you are a taxpayer.

7. What information is communicated to the State Tax Agency and what information is sent to the competent foreign authorities?

In compliance with article 25 of Directive 2011/16/EU, transposed in Spain through the twenty-second additional provision to Law 58/2003 (General Taxation Law) some of your personal information, and in particular, the information fields listed in Article 8.3 bis of the same Directive, may be communicated to the Spanish State Tax Agency, and may also subsequently be shared withthe competent foreign authorities.

Some of the information reported includes: Personal information (name, address, tax residence, tax identification number...) and economic information (contracts, balances, amounts received in interest, dividends, repayments and other payments...).

8. My contracts with Banco Sabadell have already been cancelled, why have I received this letter?

The Common Reporting Standard (CRS) states that it is necessary to report on contracts in force during the year subject to reporting, in spite of the fact that such contracts are currently cancelled.


This document provides general information on CRS. If you require specialised tax advice, we kindly recommend that you speak to your tax adviser.


FX Global Code

Banco Sabadell has adhered to the global code of conduct on wholesale currency markets that seeks to promote a liquid, open and transparent currency market in all geographies.

This code (FX Global Code) published by the BIS (International Bank of Payments) and promoted by the Central Banks has a voluntary character for the participants of the wholesale market, seeks to make the transactions safe, effective and at competitive prices, complementing the existing regulation without replacing it.

DAC 6

DAC 6 is the acronym for the European Directive on Administrative Cooperation, number 2011/16/EU, concerning administrative cooperation in the field of taxation. This directive was the subject of the sixth update by Directive 2018/822 as regards mandatory automatic exchange of information in the field of taxation in relation to reportable cross-border arrangements.


The objective of DAC 6 is to provide transparency and communication on international transactions that could lead to tax avoidance or evasion within the European Union, as well as to discourage the use of these transactions by taxpayers.


DAC 6 came into force on 25 June 2018, and requires financial institutions to report certain potentially aggressive cross-border tax planning mechanisms to the tax authorities in each country, among other things.


Grupo Banco de Sabadell works to comply with DAC 6 and to be able to communicate to the Tax Authorities, where appropriate, the cross-border tax planning mechanisms in which it participates and which are subject to the aforementioned obligation to disclose information.