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On 17 December 2020, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia adopted the Law on Amendments to the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (“Amended Law”).
A significant novelty envisaged by the Amended Law is the introduction of the concept of digital property.
Namely, the Amended Law expands the definition of “property”, which, in addition to things, money, rights, securities, other documents in any form, now includes digital property. Digital property within the meaning of the Digital Property Law represents a digital value record that can be digitally bought, sold, exchanged or transferred and that can be used as a medium for exchange or for investment purposes, whereby digital property does not include digital currency records that are legal tender and other financial property that are regulated by other laws, except when otherwise regulated by the law itself.
In addition, the novelty envisaged by the Amended Law is the definition of provider of services related to digital property.
A provider of services related to digital property is a legal entity that provides one or more services related to digital property, which are determined by the law governing digital property.
An important novelty introduced by the Amended Law also represents regulation of the obligations of a provider of services related to digital property.
Provider of services related to digital property is obliged to obtain information on all persons involved in the transaction with digital property, and if another provider of services related to digital property participates in the execution of transactions with digital property, he is obliged to ensure that this information is submitted to another service provider. Information that a service provider is obliged to obtain includes: (i) personal names or business names of the persons participating in the transaction with the digital property, as well as the information whether respective person is the initiator or the user of that transaction; (ii) addresses of the permanent / temporary residence or registered office of the persons involved in the digital property transaction; (iii) address of the digital property used for execution of the digital property transaction, or the corresponding unique identifier of the digital property transaction.
Provider of services related to the digital property of user of transaction is obliged to verify whether all of the previously mentioned information have been provided to him, which is required to be provided by the provider of services related to the digital property.
Amended Law prohibits provision of any services related to digital property that indirectly or directly enables the concealment of the identity of a party, as well as the execution of transactions with such digital property.