A beneficial owner is the individual, or individuals, who ultimately own or control a company or other legal entity. A beneficial owner is always a flesh-and-blood person, never another company. The idea is part of anti-money launderingAnti-money laundering (AML)Rules and measures meant to stop the financial system, including crypto, from being used for money laundering or terrorist financing. rules, because it makes it harder to hide ownership behind a chain of companies. The Icelandic term is raunverulegur eigandi.
Who counts as a beneficial owner?
Under Iceland's Act No. 140/2018 on measures against money laundering and terrorist financing, a beneficial owner is, among others, someone who:
- owns, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the company
- controls more than 25% of the voting rights
- controls the company in some other way
Take an example. Anna owns 60% of company A, and company A owns 50% of company B. Anna's indirect stake in company B is therefore 30% (60% of 50%), so she counts as its beneficial owner. If ownership is so spread out that nobody holds more than 25%, the people who run the company count as its beneficial owners.
The register at Skatturinn
Under Act No. 82/2019 on the registration of beneficial owners, legal entities that do business in Iceland or are in the company register must register their beneficial owners with Skatturinn's company register (in Icelandic). Changes must be reported within two weeks. Institutions and companies owned by the state or municipalities are exempt, as are companies listed on a regulated market.
The public can see a beneficial owner's name, month and year of birth, country of residence, nationality and the extent of their ownership.
Why do crypto platforms ask about it?
When a company opens an account, a crypto-asset service providerCASP (crypto-asset service provider)A company licensed under MiCA to provide crypto-asset services, such as buying, selling, custody or transfers. needs to know who really stands behind it. This is part of know your customer (KYC)Know your customer (KYC)A legally required check in which a company confirms who its customer is and what the business relationship is for, including with ID. checks and is sometimes called KYB (know your business). The provider has access to the register and must tell Skatturinn if it notices a discrepancy.
At Myntkaup, a company's beneficial owners are identified and due diligence is carried out before its account is opened.
Everything in Myntkaup Learn is written and regularly reviewed by the Myntkaup editorial team. It is for education and is not investment advice. Editorial policy. Updated 18 October 2026.