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Draft (Hebrew)

 

The Supervisor of Banks today sent a draft of a new Proper Conduct of Banking business Directive to the banking corporations for their comments, according to which it will be possible to open bank accounts via the Internet in the banking system.
 
This step is another layer in the adoption of the recommendations of the Team to Increase Competitiveness in the Banking System, and comes in addition to other measures being taken by the Banking Supervision Department to increase competitiveness in the banking system and to strengthen the ability of the retail customer to compare and choose between banks, such as: setting current account fee tracks, simplifying the process of transferring debits by authorization when moving from one bank to another, requiring the banks to present to their customers dealing in securities activity the average rate of fees actually collected in respect of similar transactions, and so forth.
 
Alongside the advantages of making it possible to open an account online, the draft also relates to the risks faced by the banking corporations in managing bank accounts, such as risks related to anti-money laundering laws and the prohibition on the financing of terror, and operational risks such as risks associated with impersonation and fraud.  The draft therefore sets out a number of restrictions and compensatory controls in order to minimize these risks. The main points set out in the circular are:
 

 

  • The person wishing to open an account shall be the account holder.

  • A bank shall be permitted to verify the identity of a person wishing to open an account based on copies of an identification certificate and an additional identifying document, without requiring the presentation of the original.

  • A “know the customer” process will be carried out by way of video conference technology, which will be documented, instead of requiring face-to-face identification that makes it necessary for the customer to physically come to a bank branch.

  • An account that is opened online shall be restricted such that cash transactions shall not exceed NIS 10,000, and the balance at the end of each business day shall not exceed NIS 300,000. These restrictions will be removed once the customer visits the branch and completes the face-to-face identification process.

 

The Banking Supervision Department will act to publish a final version soon, after receiving responses from the relevant government ministries and after discussion in the Advisory Council on Banking Matters.

Supervisor of Banks David Zaken said, “We are consistently implementing the recommendations of the Team to Increase Competitiveness in the Banking System.  Allowing the opening of accounts on the Internet will be a significant step in easing the move from one bank to another, and in increasing the competitive ability of the retail customer—households or small businesses.”