Ultimate Beneficial Owner Lookup

Purpose

Identify ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) and beneficial ownership structures of companies and trusts. Essential for AML compliance, sanctions screening, and regulatory due diligence requirements.

When to Use

• KYC/AML compliance for corporate customers
• Beneficial ownership reporting requirements
• Sanctions screening of controlling parties
• PEP (Politically Exposed Persons) identification
• Complex ownership structure analysis
• Trust and foundation beneficial ownership
• Regulatory compliance for financial institutions
• Enhanced due diligence investigations

How to Use

The UBO lookup tool traces ownership through multiple layers:

• Direct Ownership: Immediate shareholders and their percentages
• Indirect Ownership: Multi-layered ownership structures
• Control Analysis: Voting rights, management control, other influence
• Natural Persons: Individual ultimate beneficial owners
• Ownership Thresholds: 25%, 10%, or other regulatory thresholds
• Trust Structures: Settlors, trustees, beneficiaries

Examples

Corporate customer onboarding:

Entity: Investment Fund ABC
UBO Analysis: Identify all individuals with >25% beneficial ownership
Compliance: Screen UBOs against sanctions and PEP lists

Complex ownership investigation:

Target: Multinational Corporation
Structure: Trace ownership through holding companies across jurisdictions
Analysis: Map complete beneficial ownership chain to natural persons

Trust beneficial ownership:

Entity: Private Family Trust
Investigation: Identify settlors, trustees, and current beneficiaries
Screening: Assess AML/sanctions risk for all beneficial owners

Sanctions compliance:

New Customer: Offshore Holdings Ltd
Due Diligence: Verify no sanctioned individuals in ownership chain
Documentation: Create UBO disclosure for regulatory filing

Important Notes

• UBO definitions vary by jurisdiction (typically 10-25% ownership threshold)
• Complex structures may require multiple data sources and manual analysis
• Trust and foundation structures present unique identification challenges
• Ownership percentages may change - ensure information is current
• Some jurisdictions have UBO registries, others rely on company disclosure
• Privacy laws may limit access to beneficial ownership information
• Cross-reference findings with sanctions, PEP, and adverse media screening
• Document UBO analysis thoroughly for regulatory compliance