Carry out Ongoing Monitoring and KYC with AML-TRACE
With technology advancing and constant regulatory updates, it becomes challenging to ensure if your business has taken all the precautionary measures as part of the ‘Know Your Customer process. With violators coming up with novel ways to launder money every day, any due diligence conducted during customer onboarding is not enough to vet client details. Several businesses are exposed to high risks simply due to their activities. For example, dealers in precious metals and financial institutions conduct high-value financial transactions with customers and entities worldwide. And these entities can be politically exposed or sanctioned.
So, there is a high risk as fund transfers, and invoices are used to conduct illegal activities, conceal sources of funds & launder illicit money. As customer profiles and business activities change over time and you perform a one-off check, you also need to use an ongoing monitoring system as part of the due diligence procedure. AML-TRACE carries out this process within minutes. Thus, it saves your firm from non-compliance and reputational damage risks.
Why use anti-money laundering software for transaction monitoring?
AML-TRACE maintains ongoing monitoring, ensuring that business activities are current and consistent with the risk assessed during onboarding. With AML-TRACE, this process is automated.
After a one-time setting, your officials can periodically examine PEP status, sanctions, and adverse media changes. Ongoing AML monitoring is imperative for financial institutions and regulated entities that need to maintain the effectiveness of the anti-money laundering/terrorist financing programs.
What is the ongoing monitoring and KYC process?
- The company officials screen against dynamic and updated global databases to monitor client risks and exposure changes.
- The purpose and nature of changing business relationships are identified, and accordingly, a recordkeeping method is adopted.
- Client risk is reassessed based on updates to the PEP and Sanctions database, business activities, transactions, and geographies.
- It is established whether the client profile or activities align with the KYC and risk category in which they are classified.
Need for Ongoing Monitoring and KYC: Why do you need AML-TRACE?
Whether you are a real estate agent, have an international money service business, or deal with clients abroad, ongoing monitoring helps you keep track of the changing risks. It helps you achieve AML compliance as you avoid exposure to financial crime. Here are some ways in which ongoing monitoring helps maintain optimum business health:
Your Firm Is Not Exposed to High Risk/Sanctioned Countries
Several countries have lists of sanctioned entities or individuals with whom you are advised to maintain certain reporting norms or not conduct business. At the same time, some countries do not feature on any sanctioned/watchlist and yet are high risk in terms of money laundering and terrorism financing.
These are generally less developed countries prone to internal conflicts & frequently changing governments. Political patronage usually allows for adopting a dishonest approach to financial crime. It increases the levels of corruption and reduces the control set by regulation. For firms operating in such countries, a configurable ongoing compliance tool–AML-TRACE–averts your business from being subject to money laundering.
Ensures that You Incorporate Changes in Client Profiles
With time, one of your reputed clients may become a PEP as they may get appointed in a global banking outfit. Another reason could be them winning an election. Due to high-profile embezzlement, a client may even be featured in the updated watchlist or appear in adverse media searches.
Another long-established client may relocate to a country in the EU that 5AMLD/6AMLD and GDPR regulate. These are changes in the customer risk profile and call for a risk assessment and compliance approach review.
Helps Assess Risks of Business Relationships
Business relationships with PEPs or close associates, clients belonging to a high-risk industry in sanctioned countries, or on a watchlist are deemed high risk. AML-TRACE helps you generate up-to-date data when checking your clients for risk exposure.
Besides, it is an anti-money laundering software that carries out transaction monitoring in an automated manner. This automated compliance process ensures that your business is up to date with any changes related to your customers. It also works as a feedback mechanism for the management.
How can your business ensure AML monitoring through AML-TRACE?
- Identify potential risks that could affect your business's financial health and reputation.
- Know about any adverse media or additions to a watchlist periodically to take timely action on your risk.
- Prevent the business risks from escalating and avert consequential financial loss, particularly in high-risk markets.
- Scan against thousands of national & global databases to get updates on your client and countries of operation data.
- Prioritize high-risk clients and change the risk levels based on the issues identified via automated monitoring.
- Make your compliance program flexible by adding clients’ names that need to be consistently monitored by making periodical updates.
- Get a granular insight into the transactional details of high-risk customers.
- Adopt a speedy and cost-effective approach to compliance. Eliminating manual and outdated processes.
Impact of the Pandemic on the Demand for Ongoing Monitoring and KYC
While wreaking havoc worldwide, the pandemic has also brought about a dramatic shift in the economic and financial scenario. On the one hand, rising unemployment has driven bad actors to use charity foundations and other business activities for financial fraud. At the same time, market volatility has doubled the price of cryptocurrencies. It has driven individuals to keep dirty money in virtual wallets.
Thirdly, money transfer businesses have seen a rise in transactions with high-risk countries as stranded migrants send money home. Digital wallets and eCommerce businesses have grown exponentially with the recent spike in demand for contactless home deliveries & digital payments. Stay ahead of your competition by reaping the benefits derived from the AML-TRACE software.
So, the demand for robust KYC and ongoing monitoring software has increased during this crisis. Unleash the power of AML-TRACE to reduce employee workload, boost employee productivity and ensure AML Monitoring compliance all at the same time.