COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) No 233/2011 of 10 March 2011 implementing Article 16(2) of Regulation (EU) No 204/2011 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Libya

The MFSA brings to the attention of all licence holders the coming into effect of COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) No 233/2011 of 10 March 2011 concerning further restrictive measures relating to the situation in Libya published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 11 March 2011. This Regulation has immediate effect in Maltese law and requires no implementation measures and it can be viewed at the website of the Official Journal of the European Union or on the MFSA website www.mfsa.mt under “EU & International Affairs/International Affairs/International Sanctions”.

These regulations are in addition to regulations already in place by virtue of Legal Notice No. 69 of 2011 - NATIONAL INTEREST (ENABLING POWERS) ACT (CAP. 365) - United Nations Sanctions (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) Regulations, 2011 and Council regulation (EU) No. 204/2011. It should be noted that additional individuals and entities are being listed in the annex of this latest Council Regulation.

It is required that any funds, financial and economic assets pertaining to those individuals and entities listed in the Annex of the COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) No 233/2011 of 10 March 2011 shall be subject to freezing with immediate effect.

Licence-holders are required to inform the MFSA at [email protected] ONLY in the case that funds and assets are held in the name of the newly sanctioned entities listed in the latest regulation. There is NO need to send NIL returns.

Submission of this information should be effected by Tuesday 15 March 2011.

The MFSA reminds its licence-holders to exercise vigilance and verify their records on an on-going basis to ensure that any financial transactions carried out do not in any way support activities or entities which are subject to sanctions or other restrictive measures. The attention of licence holders is also drawn to the recent amendment to LN 69 of 2011 by way of LN 77 of 2011 which obliges any person who holds or freezes any assets covered by the sanctions to “without delay, notify in writing” the Sanctions Monitoring Board at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

We take this opportunity to thank licence holders for their collaboration by providing a prompt reply to our request for information on freezing of assets in relation to MFSA notices 10-2011 and 13-2011. We urge those that have not yet provided a reply to do so at the very earliest.

MFSA Ref: 14-2011