The registry will be administrated by the Czech National Bank and it will include a statement of existing natural and legal persons` accounts opened with banks and cooperative savings. The data about account balances and transactions on clients` accounts will not be a part of this registry. Only the fact of existence of such accounts will be available.
This information could be requested in case of serious suspicion on criminal activity within combating of serious tax evasions by the General Directorate of Customs and General Financial Directorate. It could be also requested by the public prosecutors, judges, intelligence agencies and the Financial Analytical Unit of the MoF to fight against general criminal activity. The registry enable the authorities to find out in which bank the suspicious subject established its account. This information could be obtained upon one request within 24 hours. The fight against tax evasion, money laundering and terrorist financing will be supported by the speed of acquisition of the information.
The Minister of Finance Andrej Babiš stated that: “The current global questioning of tens of institutions will be eliminated. The risk of information leakage in sensitive cases will be eliminated as well and the speed of obtaining of information will be increased.” Nowadays it takes several days or even weeks to get this information. The state looses the real possibility to intervene effectively in a form of blockage or seizure of the proceeds of crime on the particular accounts due to this delay. Andrej Babiš added that: “The Central Evidence of Accounts is an important pillar that will improve the functioning of Kobra”.
The similar registry is already available in France, Spain, Germany, Romania or in Italy. Establishment of such registry is also recommended in the new EU directive and currently is a part of the proposal of European Commission`s “anti-terrorist package” as well. This system will be active 16 months after the Act become effective, probably in the first half of the year 2018.