SEPBLAC Opens Money Laundering Data to Researchers: What Changes in 2026

Key data

SEPBLAC data on fund movements and money laundering operations were, until now, inaccessible to the research community. The Resolution of 17 September 2026 publishes the agreement between the Commission for the Prevention of Money Laundering and Monetary Infractions and the Bank of Spain that changes that situation: researchers—both internal to the Bank of Spain and external properly accredited—will be able to consult that information through the secure BELab environment.

The stated objective of the agreement is to promote academic research and the identification of trends in money laundering and terrorist financing prevention. This is not a free data opening: each request goes through an evaluation process and SEPBLAC maintains control over what is published.

What does this regulation establish?

The agreement articulates a data transfer mechanism with technical and legal safeguards in several layers. The key elements are as follows:

The design of the agreement ensures that at no time can researchers extract data outside the BELab environment or publish results without SEPBLAC's approval. Irreversible anonymization is the first technical barrier; the confidentiality agreement and prior approval for publication are the legal barriers.

Economic and operational impact

This agreement does not generate direct costs for companies or the financial sector in general. Its impact is fundamentally operational and institutional, with two main effects:

• For the research ecosystem: A previously inaccessible source of data on money laundering is opened. This can accelerate the production of studies, detection models, and trend analysis that, in the medium term, may influence regulation and compliance systems of financial entities.
• For entities subject to money laundering prevention obligations: The results of research—once approved by SEPBLAC—may translate into new guidelines, risk typologies, or supervisory criteria. Companies with AML/CFT obligations (banks, insurers, notaries, fund managers, among others) should monitor publications derived from this agreement.

There are no sanctions or adaptation deadlines directly associated with this regulation for the private sector. The indirect impact will come through research results and their eventual transfer to SEPBLAC supervisory criteria.

Who does it affect?

• Internal researchers at the Bank of Spain working in areas related to money laundering or terrorist financing.
• Accredited external researchers (academics, research centers, think tanks) who want to access SEPBLAC data for their studies.
• SEPBLAC itself, which assumes responsibility for evaluating requests, anonymizing data, and approving publications.
• Financial entities and subjects obligated in AML/CFT indirectly: research results may influence future supervisory guidelines, risk typologies, and compliance criteria.
• Compliance and Money Laundering Prevention departments of banks, insurers, investment funds, notaries, and other obligated subjects, which must monitor academic production derived from this agreement.

Practical example

A research team from a Spanish university specializing in financial crime wants to analyze patterns of money laundering operations detected by SEPBLAC in recent years. Until 25 September 2026, that access was impossible. With the new agreement, the process would be as follows:

1. The team submits a formal request for access to SEPBLAC, detailing the research project.
2. SEPBLAC evaluates the request on an individual basis and decides whether to approve it.
3. If approved, researchers sign a confidentiality agreement.
4. SEPBLAC irreversibly anonymizes the relevant data and makes it available to the team within the secure BELab environment.
5. Researchers work with the data exclusively within BELab, with no possibility of extracting it.
6. Before publishing any results or article, the team must obtain express approval from SEPBLAC.
7. The Coordination and Monitoring Committee oversees that the entire process complies with the agreement.

If during the process any citizen or entity submits a transparency request regarding the data used, it is automatically redirected to SEPBLAC for resolution.

What should stakeholders do now?

1. Researchers who want to access the data: Prepare a formal request addressed to SEPBLAC with details of the research project, necessary data, and study purpose. SEPBLAC evaluates each case individually, so the request must be well-founded.
2. Researchers accessing the data: Sign the required confidentiality agreement before starting work with the data. Remember that any publication of results requires express SEPBLAC approval.
3. Compliance departments of financial entities: Monitor academic publications derived from this agreement. Studies based on real SEPBLAC data can anticipate changes in risk typologies and supervisory criteria.
4. AML/CFT managers in obligated subjects: No immediate action is required, but it is advisable to register this agreement as a source of future regulatory signals. Research results may translate into new SEPBLAC guidelines or recommendations.
5. Transparency requests: If any party receives a request for access to information related to this data, it must redirect it to SEPBLAC, which is the competent body to resolve it.

Official source

View complete regulation at official source

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific decisions, consult a qualified professional. Source: https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2026-19934