Privacy vs. Shareholder Transparency : Did the ECJ Decision in WM and Sovim SA Impair the Global Fight Against Money Laundering?

The Judgment of the European Court of Justice (Grand Chamber) of 22 November 2022, ECLI:EU:C:2022:912 in the Joined Cases C-37/20 and C-601/20, WM and Sovim SA v. Luxembourg Business Registers has spurred some strong reactions. According to some, it “will leave fraudsters rubbing their hands with glee” and it “has infuriated campaigners who are shocked a court would side with tax haven bosses over the interests of public transparency”, while others claim that it “represents a victory for data protection and the rule of law in an extremely politicised context”. This paper explains the back-ground of the two cases and then outlines the Opinion of the Advocate General and the Judgment of the Court. Subsequently, it presents a historical perspective of shareholder ownership disclosure, analyses the legal context of the Judgment, and discusses how the prerequisites set by the Court of Justice may be reconciled with the global fight against money laundering