Determining the true owner of a company might become more difficult after Europe’s top court ruled automatic access to registers of beneficial ownership conflicted with the right to privacy.

In a Nov. 22 decision, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) invalidated a provision of the 5th EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD5) that guaranteed public access to information on companies’ real owners.

Neil Hodge is a freelance business journalist and photographer based in Nottingham, United Kingdom. He writes on insurance and risk management, corporate governance, internal audit, compliance, and legal...