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This paper aims to analyse the legal configuration of the Spanish financial ownership file and identifies its main legal shortcomings and its necessity and proportionality.

The primary and secondary sources of information on which this paper is based are statutes and reports issued by Spanish consultative bodies, respectively. Article 43 of Act 10/2010 of 28 April on the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing created the “financial ownership file”, a publicly owned personal data file containing information on the opening and cancellation of all types of financial accounts. The recently enacted Royal Decree 304/2014 of 5 May approving the Regulations of Act 10/2010 contains further guidance.

The objective of the financial ownership file is laudable, but the way it has been configured creates new obligations that it could be argued are unnecessary as there are already mechanisms in place to obtain the information in question. The recently enacted regulations raise concerns to the author about access rights, data protection and monitoring, among other aspects.

This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the Spanish financial ownership file, a topic not yet explored in great detail, and could be useful for other legislatures intending to implement similar systems in their countries.

The aim of this research is to analyze the success of digital transformation (DT) in the management and performance of organizations. To do so, the role of IT and its ability to integrate in organizations that provide professional services with high added value for their clients are investigated. These services require highly developed skills as they solve complex problems for the clients and this means that success depends on gathering knowledge from different sources (customers, public administrations and competitors). This study analyses the decisive and complementary role of IT in this process.

The analysis combines quantitative and qualitative methods. After questioning managers of Spanish KIBS companies about certain components of DT, the gathered data are subsequently processed with PLS-SEM to establish causal relationships.

The results show that digital capability is the determinant of DT. It has a positive effect on the digital resources integrated in KIBS companies and on their organizational performances.

Future research should continue to analyze other components of TD that drive the organizational performance of KIBS firms, such as technological culture or government policies that encourage digital transactions. The present study analyzes data from companies that are part of a single economic sector in Spain which may limit the conclusions drawn. It would be particularly useful to confirm the applicability of the results in companies operating in different markets to explore the direct relationship between digital capability and organizational performance.

This research has implications for managers of KIBS companies, as it shows the high potential of the ability of IT to implement and manage a TD process. Managers can benefit from IT management practices using the appropriate tools (ERP, CRM and management software) to gain more knowledge of customer behavior with the possibility of easily codifying and analyzing the data, which significantly influences innovation activities. The objective is to develop a strong internal capability to absorb knowledge from day-to-day interactions with customers by using IT effectively. This process leads to an improvement in the organizational performance of KIBS companies, as they become more effective in decision making with improved internal communication, generate greater employee satisfaction and reach new customers. Following strategies aimed at the implementation and use of the technological resources studied creates more agile firms and helps to close the production gap between SMEs and large companies.

The results obtained can help create sustainable businesses through cloud-based technology tools. It can provide insights for policy makers to implement economic policies that help SMEs to become more competitive and sustainable.

The development of digital technologies and the ability to manage them is one of the decisive factors that conceptualizes DT and improves organizational performance. This research contributes to the understanding of the need for managers of KIBS companies to follow strategies oriented towards the digitization of their organizations and for the collaborators to have a high level of IT training, especially in the use of cloud technology.