Who is a Beneficial Owner?
A Beneficial Owner is defined as a natural person who controls at least 10% of the issued share capital; or, 10 % voting rights; or a right to appoint a Director or exercise significant control over a company’s finances or financial policies.
What does the law say about it?
The requirement for the disclosure of Beneficial Owners was introduced under Section 93A of the Companies Act 2015 in 2019. The provision requires every company to keep a list of its Beneficial Owners. The Attorney General has since published the Companies (Beneficial Ownership Information) Regulations, 2020 to implement the requirements of Section 93A of the Companies Act 2015. All companies are required to update the details of the beneficial owners by January 31 2021. The failure to comply attracts a fine of a maximum of Kes 500,000 on conviction and an additional Kes 50,000 for every day of non-compliance.
How can I be compliant?
A company should disclose the required information regarding its Beneficial Owners on the Business Registration Service portal on eCitizen.
Should you need our help in linking your company and uploading the Beneficial Ownership Register, kindly contact us on: info@lawmark.co.ke or call 020 4404410.