Precious Stones and Precious Metals (Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing) Bill

Bill No. 1/2019

Read the first time on 14 January 2019.

An Act to regulate persons who carry on a business of regulated dealing or as intermediaries for regulated dealing, so as to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing, and to make consequential and related amendments to certain other Acts.

Be it enacted by the President with the advice and consent of the Parliament of Singapore, as follows:

PART 1

PRELIMINARY

Short title and commencement

1. This Act is the Precious Stones and Precious Metals (Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing) Act 2019 and comes into operation on a date that the Minister appoints by notification in the Gazette.

Interpretation

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“asset-backed token” means a token, certificate or other instrument backed by one or more precious metals, precious stones or precious products that entitles the holder to the precious metal, precious stone or precious product, or part of it, but excludes —

(a)	securities or derivatives contracts within the meanings of the Securities and Futures Act (Cap. 289); and
(b)	commodity contracts within the meaning of the Commodity Trading Act (Cap. 48A);

“Assistant Registrar” means an Assistant Registrar of Regulated Dealers appointed under section 4(1);

“authorised officer” means an authorised officer appointed under section 4(2);

“cash transaction report” means a cash transaction report under section 17;

“company” has the meaning given by section 4(1) of the Companies Act (Cap. 50);

“customer” means a person with whom a regulated dealer enters into or intends to enter into a transaction;

“Deputy Registrar” means a Deputy Registrar of Regulated Dealers appointed under section 4(1);

“FATF” means the intergovernmental body known as the Financial Action Task Force;

“FATF Recommendations” means the recommendations issued by the FATF from time to time relating to the prevention of money laundering and the financing of terrorism;

“financial institution” has the meaning given by section 27A(6) of the Monetary Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 186) read with section 27A(7) of that Act;

“intermediary”, in relation to regulated dealing, means a broker, an auctioneer, an exchange or any provider of a trading or clearing facility, for regulated dealing, whether by electronic means or otherwise;

“money laundering or terrorism financing offence” means an offence under —

(a)	Part 2, 3 or 5;
(b)	sections 43 to 48 of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (Cap. 65A);
(c)	the Terrorism (Suppression of Financing) Act (Cap. 325);
(d)	any regulations made under the United Nations Act (Cap. 339);
(e)	any provision of any other written law relating to the prevention of money laundering or terrorism financing; or
(f)	the law of any foreign country or territory relating to the prevention of money laundering or terrorism financing;

“pawnbroker” and “pawnbroking” have the meanings given by section 3 of the Pawnbrokers Act 2015 (Act 2 of 2015);

“precious metal” means any precious metal specified in Part 1 of the Schedule in a manufactured or unmanufactured state;

“precious product” means any jewellery, watch, apparel, accessory, ornament or other finished product —

(a)	made up of, containing or having attached to it, any precious stone or precious metal or both; and
(b)	at least 50% of its value (or other percentage of value prescribed in substitution) is attributable to the precious stone or precious metal or both,

but excludes any product or class of products of a type prescribed;

“precious stone” means any precious stone specified in Part 2 of the Schedule;

“registered dealer” means a regulated dealer who is registered under section 7;

“Registrar” means the Registrar of Regulated Dealers appointed under section 4(1);

“registration” means registration under section 7;

“regulated dealer” means any person who carries on —

(a)	a business of regulated dealing; or
(b)	business as an intermediary for regulated dealing,

but excludes a pawnbroker and such other person as may be prescribed;

“regulated dealing” means doing any of the following:

(a)	manufacturing any precious stone, precious metal or precious product;
(b)	importing or possessing for sale any precious stone, precious metal or precious product;
(c)	selling or offering for sale any precious stone, precious metal or precious product;
(d)	selling or redeeming asset‑backed tokens;
(e)	purchasing any precious stone, precious metal or precious product for the purposes of resale;

“sale” includes a supply under a conditional sale agreement or hire‑purchase agreement within the meanings given by section 2(1) of the Hire‑Purchase Act (Cap. 125), and “selling” is construed accordingly;

“secondhand goods dealer” means a secondhand goods dealer within the meaning given by the Secondhand Goods Dealers Act (Cap. 288A);

“substantial shareholder”, in relation to a company, has the meaning given by section 81 of the Companies Act;

“Suspicious Transaction Reporting Officer” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act.

Purpose of Act

3. The purpose of this Act is to combat money laundering and terrorism financing in the precious stones industry and precious metals industry by —

(a)	regulating the persons who carry on a business of regulated dealing or business as intermediaries for regulated dealing; and
(b)	prescribing measures to prevent regulated dealing from being used to facilitate money laundering or terrorism financing.

Appointment of Registrar, Deputy Registrars, Assistant Registrars and authorised officers

4.—(1) The Minister may appoint from among public officers —

(a)	a Registrar of Regulated Dealers; and
(b)	one or more Deputy Registrars of Regulated Dealers and Assistant Registrars of Regulated Dealers.

(2) The Registrar may appoint any of the following persons to be an authorised officer for the purposes of this Act:

(a)	a public officer;
(b)	an auxiliary police officer appointed under the Police Force Act (Cap. 235);
(c)	a public accountant registered or deemed to be registered under the Accountants Act (Cap. 2);
(d)	any individual suitably qualified and trained to be an authorised officer.

(3) The Registrar is responsible for the administration of this Act, and may exercise all the powers and perform all the duties and functions of the Registrar under this Act, subject to any general or special directions of the Minister.

(4) A Deputy Registrar or an Assistant Registrar may exercise all the powers and perform all the duties and functions of the Registrar under any provision of this Act (except the power of appointment and the power of delegation conferred by this section), subject to such condition or limitation as the Registrar may specify; and any reference in the provision of this Act to the Registrar includes a reference to a Deputy Registrar or an Assistant Registrar.

(5) The Registrar may delegate the exercise of any of the powers conferred or duties imposed on the Registrar under any provision of this Act (except the power of appointment and the power of delegation conferred by this section) to an authorised officer, subject to such condition or limitation as the Registrar may specify; and any reference in the provision of this Act to the Registrar includes a reference to such an authorised officer.

Public servants

5. Any authorised officer appointed under section 4(2) is taken to be a public servant for the purposes of the Penal Code (Cap. 224) when exercising any power conferred or performing any duty imposed on the authorised officer by the Registrar.

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