Getting ahead of the criminals has long been the holy grail of law enforcement. Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulation is a perfect example, but it’s also an area where governments struggle to keep up.
Structures, routines and active management
Money laundering is a rapidly growing challenge worldwide: it’s estimated that it accounts for up to 5% of global GDP1. Such a threat means that AML processes need to be fully integrated into business operations – for peace of mind as well as financial protection.
Today this means that AML and Know Your Customer checks must be an essential part of a comprehensive digital environment within which financial services should already be operating.
Governments can’t always keep up
The challenges of tracking and combatting financial crime are numerous. Governments introduce welcome legislation, but it is hard to keep up with the growing threats. More often it is the private sector that leads the field with practical answers to real world problems.
Transaction monitoring solutions are key to this. If you doubt the claim, consider that such services were worth USD 2.42 billion in 2022, an amount estimated to grow to USD 5.22 billion by 20282.
The implications of this are covered in a recent yahoo news3 article which identifies some important trends in financial crime and a few of the solutions.
Say goodbye to sticking plasters – seek out a comprehensive approach to AML
When infrastructure is created piecemeal, gaps are inevitable and quickly exploited by criminals. Thus, the response requires systems and services which are all encompassing – and where potential blind spots between data silos are no longer vulnerable. Implementation must be rigorous and watertight.
From the very start of KYC checks to continuous transaction monitoring, genuinely effective AML provision requires reliable and globally organized technologies that are easily operated and infinitely adaptable.
For businesses such as those providing travel money, remittance services, and gambling, amongst other activities, this high level of protection is essential.
For highly effective solutions, look beyond the established names in Fintech
While many well-known software houses have packages to address these concerns, the proprietorial approach of some of the big brands threatens a loss of flexibility. For many businesses, including those at enterprise scale, the answer lies in services now provided by smaller specialists with global reach.
These services – cloud based and easily scalable – can sidestep problems such as system incompatibility to ensure seamless and comprehensive protection; always-on protection that will simultaneously run in the background but be alert and responsive to risk.
With the right choice, their users stay ahead in the AML game and add significantly to their existing operational strengths.
By Bjorn Larsson, CEO at Essiell Ltd, and Chairman of Essiell Compli.
Essiell Compli has a proven pedigree in protecting businesses from financial crime. They offer a powerful and flexible suite of cloud based services, precisely configured to meet the unique requirements of each client.
Essiell Compli’s specialized family of services in Compli include comprehensive onboarding, due diligence and compliance. Highly effective anti-money laundering provision eliminates the loopholes exploited by organized crime.
Whatever your business, Essiell Compli is dedicated to protecting your livelihood, reputation, and peace of mind.
1 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) forecast.
2 New York, Aug. 29, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report “Global Anti-Money Laundering Solutions Market Size & Share Analysis – Growth Trends & Forecasts (2023 – 2028)” – https://www.reportlinker.com/p06487550/?utm_source=GNW
3 https://finance.yahoo.com/news/global-anti-money-laundering-solutions-160700667.html
