To successfully identify the parties involved in any suspicious activity or money laundering/fraud processes, timely identification and reporting of the same is crucial. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (‘FinCEN’) has instituted various changes and updates to the requirements to enhance the process.
We will take a look at SAR requirements and challenges for financial institutions and focus on the solutions that can be enacted to stay compliant.
Understanding Its Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) Requirementcomplianceonline123
What is Suspicious Activity Report (SAR)?
BSA requires every US national bank to file a Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) when they detect certain known or suspected violations of federal law or suspicious transactions related to a money laundering activity or a violation of the BSA.
Purpose of SAR:
Identify new methodologies of money-laundering
Offer data for law enforcement investigation
Deter and Constraint money-laundering
BSA requires every US national bank to file a Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) when they detect certain known or suspected violations of federal law or suspicious transactions related to a money laundering activity or a violation of the BSA.
Purpose of SAR:
Identify new methodologies of money-laundering
Offer data for law enforcement investigation
Deter and Constraint money-laundering
Distinction between CTR and SAR
CTR is required whenever the transaction or series of transactions exceeds the minimum threshold requirement in a 24 hour period.
SAR is required to be filed when there are elements of uselessness, suspicion or indicators of potential illegal activity. Minimum threshold requirement is not applicable to SAR situation.
How to Identify Suspicious Activity?
Banks can use a number of methods to track and identify unusual activity – this may include:
Employee identification
Law enforcement enquiries and requests
Transaction and surveillance monitoring system output
Any combination of the above
When is SAR Filling Required?
A SAR filing is required for any potential crimes:
involving insider abuse regardless of the dollar amount;
where there is an identifiable suspect and the transaction involves $5,000 or more; and
where there is no identifiable suspect and the transaction involves $25,000 or more
When to File SARs:
A SAR should be filed no later than 30 calendar days from the date of the initial detection of facts that may constitute a basis for filing a SAR.
In cases where no suspect can be identified, the time period for filing a SAR is extended to 60 days.
SAR Narratives
SAR Narratives Should:
Be concise and clear
Be chronological and complete
Provide a detailed description of the known or suspected criminal violation or suspicious activity
Identify the essential elements of the information
Outline of Effective SAR Narrative:
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
Want to learn more about anti-money laundering process, BSA requirements and best practices? ComplianceOnline webinars and seminars are a great training resource. Check out the following links:
How to Write an Effective SAR Narratives
Best Practices for Writing Effective SAR.
Managing an Effective AML Compliance Program
Are You Doing Your BSA/AML Risk Assessment Properly?
How to Report under AML/BSA?
BSA/AML Compliance Checklist
How to Create Effective AML/BSA Compliance Program?
How to Develop Risk Models for AML Monitoring Program?
Sanctions List Screening with World-Check and CaseWare Alessa
Get the most comprehensive sanctions list screening capability available today with CaseWare AML Compliance and the Thomson Reuters World-Check database.
WHAT IS CASEWARE AML COMPLIANCE?
As part of their anti-money laundering (AML) compliance programs, financial institutions and other organizations must take measures to ensure they are not doing business with sanctioned individuals, groups or countries. CaseWare AML Compliance is a solution that has Know Your Customer (KYC), transaction monitoring, sanctions list screening, and regulatory reporting capabilities in a single platform, allowing businesses to fulfill all key areas required by AML regulations.
By adopting this solution, compliance teams have at their fingertips advanced and configurable analytics, visualizations, workflows, alerts and case management capabilities. Organizations can identify high-risk individuals and entities; detect suspicious transactions; manage investigations and compliance risks through automated workflows; and electronically file reports to regulators.
THOMSON REUTERS WORLD-CHECK DATABASE
CaseWare AML Compliance is integrated with Thomson Reuters World-Check database, which currently includes more than 100,000 sources. Hundreds of global researcher analysts review more than 530 sanction, watch and regulatory law and enforcement lists in addition to thousands of other sources of information related to politically exposed persons (PEPs) and individuals and entities not found on official lists daily. This makes World-Check the most comprehensive and up-to-date sanctions list available today.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
Money Laundering and Its Fall-out - ROLE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN ANTI M...Resurgent India
In an effort to detect potential money laundering schemes, financial institutions have deployed anti-money laundering (AML) detection solutions and enterprise-wide procedural programs.
Webinar: Strategies to Enhance your Screening and Transaction Monitoring Proc...Alessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/strategies-to-enhance-your-screening-and-transaction-monitoring-processes/
Transaction monitoring and sanctions screening are crucial processes for both traditional and non-traditional financial institutions. With changing regulations coupled with increased regulatory scrutiny being the new normal, having a streamlined and flexible approach has become more important for AML Compliance teams looking to improve cost savings and resource allocation.
In this webinar, our presenters from ICICI Bank and Transfast join CaseWare RCM to discuss
• How to assess and factor risk criteria such as regulatory, country, customer and services risks;
• Data elements to consider when determining lists selection and customer and/or transactions attributes
• Policies and procedures to determine monitoring and screening type and frequency as well as management of high risk situations
• Strategies for increasing detection of real reportable activities and reducing false positives and time for investigations
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
Understanding Its Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) Requirementcomplianceonline123
What is Suspicious Activity Report (SAR)?
BSA requires every US national bank to file a Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) when they detect certain known or suspected violations of federal law or suspicious transactions related to a money laundering activity or a violation of the BSA.
Purpose of SAR:
Identify new methodologies of money-laundering
Offer data for law enforcement investigation
Deter and Constraint money-laundering
BSA requires every US national bank to file a Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) when they detect certain known or suspected violations of federal law or suspicious transactions related to a money laundering activity or a violation of the BSA.
Purpose of SAR:
Identify new methodologies of money-laundering
Offer data for law enforcement investigation
Deter and Constraint money-laundering
Distinction between CTR and SAR
CTR is required whenever the transaction or series of transactions exceeds the minimum threshold requirement in a 24 hour period.
SAR is required to be filed when there are elements of uselessness, suspicion or indicators of potential illegal activity. Minimum threshold requirement is not applicable to SAR situation.
How to Identify Suspicious Activity?
Banks can use a number of methods to track and identify unusual activity – this may include:
Employee identification
Law enforcement enquiries and requests
Transaction and surveillance monitoring system output
Any combination of the above
When is SAR Filling Required?
A SAR filing is required for any potential crimes:
involving insider abuse regardless of the dollar amount;
where there is an identifiable suspect and the transaction involves $5,000 or more; and
where there is no identifiable suspect and the transaction involves $25,000 or more
When to File SARs:
A SAR should be filed no later than 30 calendar days from the date of the initial detection of facts that may constitute a basis for filing a SAR.
In cases where no suspect can be identified, the time period for filing a SAR is extended to 60 days.
SAR Narratives
SAR Narratives Should:
Be concise and clear
Be chronological and complete
Provide a detailed description of the known or suspected criminal violation or suspicious activity
Identify the essential elements of the information
Outline of Effective SAR Narrative:
Introduction
Body
Conclusion
Want to learn more about anti-money laundering process, BSA requirements and best practices? ComplianceOnline webinars and seminars are a great training resource. Check out the following links:
How to Write an Effective SAR Narratives
Best Practices for Writing Effective SAR.
Managing an Effective AML Compliance Program
Are You Doing Your BSA/AML Risk Assessment Properly?
How to Report under AML/BSA?
BSA/AML Compliance Checklist
How to Create Effective AML/BSA Compliance Program?
How to Develop Risk Models for AML Monitoring Program?
Sanctions List Screening with World-Check and CaseWare Alessa
Get the most comprehensive sanctions list screening capability available today with CaseWare AML Compliance and the Thomson Reuters World-Check database.
WHAT IS CASEWARE AML COMPLIANCE?
As part of their anti-money laundering (AML) compliance programs, financial institutions and other organizations must take measures to ensure they are not doing business with sanctioned individuals, groups or countries. CaseWare AML Compliance is a solution that has Know Your Customer (KYC), transaction monitoring, sanctions list screening, and regulatory reporting capabilities in a single platform, allowing businesses to fulfill all key areas required by AML regulations.
By adopting this solution, compliance teams have at their fingertips advanced and configurable analytics, visualizations, workflows, alerts and case management capabilities. Organizations can identify high-risk individuals and entities; detect suspicious transactions; manage investigations and compliance risks through automated workflows; and electronically file reports to regulators.
THOMSON REUTERS WORLD-CHECK DATABASE
CaseWare AML Compliance is integrated with Thomson Reuters World-Check database, which currently includes more than 100,000 sources. Hundreds of global researcher analysts review more than 530 sanction, watch and regulatory law and enforcement lists in addition to thousands of other sources of information related to politically exposed persons (PEPs) and individuals and entities not found on official lists daily. This makes World-Check the most comprehensive and up-to-date sanctions list available today.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
Money Laundering and Its Fall-out - ROLE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN ANTI M...Resurgent India
In an effort to detect potential money laundering schemes, financial institutions have deployed anti-money laundering (AML) detection solutions and enterprise-wide procedural programs.
Webinar: Strategies to Enhance your Screening and Transaction Monitoring Proc...Alessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/strategies-to-enhance-your-screening-and-transaction-monitoring-processes/
Transaction monitoring and sanctions screening are crucial processes for both traditional and non-traditional financial institutions. With changing regulations coupled with increased regulatory scrutiny being the new normal, having a streamlined and flexible approach has become more important for AML Compliance teams looking to improve cost savings and resource allocation.
In this webinar, our presenters from ICICI Bank and Transfast join CaseWare RCM to discuss
• How to assess and factor risk criteria such as regulatory, country, customer and services risks;
• Data elements to consider when determining lists selection and customer and/or transactions attributes
• Policies and procedures to determine monitoring and screening type and frequency as well as management of high risk situations
• Strategies for increasing detection of real reportable activities and reducing false positives and time for investigations
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
NICSA Webinar | AML Enhanced Customer Due Diligence - "Beneficial Owner Rule"NICSA
The wait is finally over, after years of waiting we now have the final Customer Due Diligence Rule. This new rule will require financial institutions to enhance their AML programs to further scrutinize entity accounts and their beneficial owners. The panel will detail key requirements and dates while comparing the CDD rule to the EU 3rd directive.
Elements of Customer Risk - Products & Services, Activity Patterns and BehaviorsAlessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/elements-customer-risk-products-services-activity-patterns-behaviors/
In this presentation we explore how a customer's anticipated transaction activity, products and services can impact their risk score. We delve into various patterns of higher risk and red flag customer transactions and behaviors, and how these and other factors impact an evolving risk score over the life of the customer relationship.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
AML/BSA - introductory guide to compliance for gaming industry compliance personnel. How to comply with federal and state law by building a rigorous compliance system.
Operational innovations in AML/CFT compliance processes and financial inclus...CGAP
This report contains the findings of a research project to identify and categorize leading operational AML* compliance practices among financial service providers for the identification, verification and ongoing monitoring and management of lower income customers. This project began with the hypothesis that an increasing number of financial service providers with products targeting lower income population segments are reducing client acquisition and monitoring costs, and improving efficiency and effectiveness of the processes in scope.
Performing due diligence investigations on an individual or company with a focus on financial resources, competence and reputation can be critical before making business decisions. In today’s fast-changing global marketplace, failure to conduct adequate due diligence can make an organization vulnerable to substantial losses and liabilities. The scope of a due diligence investigation may cover the legality of the source of investment funds, the transaction or litigation history of a counterparty, or other factual inquiries that may be required to close a deal. These investigations are particularly important if the parties are foreign, or if a proposed venture will operate in parts of the world where business is not adequately protected by contract law, making success heavily dependent on trust and good faith between the parties.
Interfor, Inc., a firm specializing in foreign and domestic corporate investigations since 1979, performs enhanced due diligence for clients who need comprehensive background information about new business relationships and prospective partners in mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, venture capital investments or large loan transactions. All inquiries and findings are strictly confidential and are pursued in compliance with applicable law.
Vskills certification in KYC (Know Your Customer) and Anti Money Laundering Operation, is one of the first certifications in this area of banking sector. A Vskills Certified AML/KYC Officer finds employment in banking and banking ancillary firms, security and audit firms, and other small and medium enterprises.
http://www.vskills.in/certification/Certified-AML-KYC-Compliance-Officer
Elements of Customer Risk: Profiles and RelationshipsAlessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/elements-customer-risk-profiles-relationships/
Customer risk rating is an integral part of the customer due diligence process, yet it can be a difficult tool to implement. The risk tolerance of the organization, what products are used, what data is available and the weighting of each risk factor are just some of the variables that need to be considered to determine whether the overall aggregate score is considered high-, medium- or low- risk.
In Part 1 of this webinar series, Laurie Kelly, CAMS will discuss her experience with calculating risk ratings and things that every financial institution should consider.
Viewers will learn about the objectives and fundamentals of customer risk scoring, as well as a logical way to categorize types of risks. She will then review various risk factors to consider when assessing customer risk from a demographic/profile and relationships perspective.
Finally, Laurie will explore separately individual and business/commercial customers risk factors but with a greater focus on business customers, which have more nuanced and complex risk considerations.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
Temaswiss' Integrated Key Risk Controls (IKRC) best-practice design for Commercial Banking KYC and AML Transactions Monitoring.
- Commoditised Consulting & FSI Advisory packages.
- Tailored to your data & process realities.
- Budget- & Time-bound.
https://www.oceansys.com/ofac_solution.aspx | ¨Monitoring the OPEC Watch list for individuals identified as PEP can help international banks to ensure that they are always following the letter of the law. OPEC Screening Software can make this entire process much easier.
The goAML application is a UNODC strategic response to financial crime including money laundering and terrorist financing. The goAML application has been developed by the Information Technology Service of UNODC in partnership with the UNODC Global Programme Against Money Laundering. It is an integrated database and intelligent analysis system intended for use by Financial Intelligence Units worldwide.
http://goaml.unodc.org/goaml/en/index.html
Assessing AML Geographic Risk: a Methodology (November 2020)Alessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/assessing-aml-geographic-risk-a-methodology/
Foreign transaction activity is an established risk factor for money laundering. But, what makes one country "riskier" than another from a money laundering or terrorist financing perspective? Financial institutions have no definitive source for country money laundering risk. In this presentation on customer risk scoring, Laurie Kelly, CAMS explores one objective methodology financial institutions may consider to assess individual countries' money laundering risk, which in turn may be used in transaction activity monitoring, customer risk scoring and the institution's high level money laundering risk assessment.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
E-book: How to manage Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terroris...Jitske de Bruijne
Financial Institutions continue to face heightened fines and regulatory scrutiny over their AML/CFT Programs. This e-book helps you to manage AML/CFT Programs.
https://www.oceansys.com/products.aspx?showprd=OFAC-EDD%20SERVER | OFAC Screening Software offers banks a way to remain compliant and to identify parties that are participating in suspicious activity. OFAC Screening Software can monitor each and every transaction to ensure that a bank is doing everything in its power to identify these blocked persons or entities.
La tecnologia al servizio della sicurezza nei luoghi di lavoroDaniele Carnevale
Gli incidenti nei luoghi di lavoro, sono ancora oggi una triste realtà. Fortunatamente la tecnologia può aiutare molto. A-Key ed Enel Distribuzione, hanno brevettato congiuntamente una soluzione che sfrutta il paradigma alla base dell'IoT per la slavaguardia degli operatori di field.
NICSA Webinar | AML Enhanced Customer Due Diligence - "Beneficial Owner Rule"NICSA
The wait is finally over, after years of waiting we now have the final Customer Due Diligence Rule. This new rule will require financial institutions to enhance their AML programs to further scrutinize entity accounts and their beneficial owners. The panel will detail key requirements and dates while comparing the CDD rule to the EU 3rd directive.
Elements of Customer Risk - Products & Services, Activity Patterns and BehaviorsAlessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/elements-customer-risk-products-services-activity-patterns-behaviors/
In this presentation we explore how a customer's anticipated transaction activity, products and services can impact their risk score. We delve into various patterns of higher risk and red flag customer transactions and behaviors, and how these and other factors impact an evolving risk score over the life of the customer relationship.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
AML/BSA - introductory guide to compliance for gaming industry compliance personnel. How to comply with federal and state law by building a rigorous compliance system.
Operational innovations in AML/CFT compliance processes and financial inclus...CGAP
This report contains the findings of a research project to identify and categorize leading operational AML* compliance practices among financial service providers for the identification, verification and ongoing monitoring and management of lower income customers. This project began with the hypothesis that an increasing number of financial service providers with products targeting lower income population segments are reducing client acquisition and monitoring costs, and improving efficiency and effectiveness of the processes in scope.
Performing due diligence investigations on an individual or company with a focus on financial resources, competence and reputation can be critical before making business decisions. In today’s fast-changing global marketplace, failure to conduct adequate due diligence can make an organization vulnerable to substantial losses and liabilities. The scope of a due diligence investigation may cover the legality of the source of investment funds, the transaction or litigation history of a counterparty, or other factual inquiries that may be required to close a deal. These investigations are particularly important if the parties are foreign, or if a proposed venture will operate in parts of the world where business is not adequately protected by contract law, making success heavily dependent on trust and good faith between the parties.
Interfor, Inc., a firm specializing in foreign and domestic corporate investigations since 1979, performs enhanced due diligence for clients who need comprehensive background information about new business relationships and prospective partners in mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, venture capital investments or large loan transactions. All inquiries and findings are strictly confidential and are pursued in compliance with applicable law.
Vskills certification in KYC (Know Your Customer) and Anti Money Laundering Operation, is one of the first certifications in this area of banking sector. A Vskills Certified AML/KYC Officer finds employment in banking and banking ancillary firms, security and audit firms, and other small and medium enterprises.
http://www.vskills.in/certification/Certified-AML-KYC-Compliance-Officer
Elements of Customer Risk: Profiles and RelationshipsAlessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/elements-customer-risk-profiles-relationships/
Customer risk rating is an integral part of the customer due diligence process, yet it can be a difficult tool to implement. The risk tolerance of the organization, what products are used, what data is available and the weighting of each risk factor are just some of the variables that need to be considered to determine whether the overall aggregate score is considered high-, medium- or low- risk.
In Part 1 of this webinar series, Laurie Kelly, CAMS will discuss her experience with calculating risk ratings and things that every financial institution should consider.
Viewers will learn about the objectives and fundamentals of customer risk scoring, as well as a logical way to categorize types of risks. She will then review various risk factors to consider when assessing customer risk from a demographic/profile and relationships perspective.
Finally, Laurie will explore separately individual and business/commercial customers risk factors but with a greater focus on business customers, which have more nuanced and complex risk considerations.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
Temaswiss' Integrated Key Risk Controls (IKRC) best-practice design for Commercial Banking KYC and AML Transactions Monitoring.
- Commoditised Consulting & FSI Advisory packages.
- Tailored to your data & process realities.
- Budget- & Time-bound.
https://www.oceansys.com/ofac_solution.aspx | ¨Monitoring the OPEC Watch list for individuals identified as PEP can help international banks to ensure that they are always following the letter of the law. OPEC Screening Software can make this entire process much easier.
The goAML application is a UNODC strategic response to financial crime including money laundering and terrorist financing. The goAML application has been developed by the Information Technology Service of UNODC in partnership with the UNODC Global Programme Against Money Laundering. It is an integrated database and intelligent analysis system intended for use by Financial Intelligence Units worldwide.
http://goaml.unodc.org/goaml/en/index.html
Assessing AML Geographic Risk: a Methodology (November 2020)Alessa
WATCH WEBINAR: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/webinars/assessing-aml-geographic-risk-a-methodology/
Foreign transaction activity is an established risk factor for money laundering. But, what makes one country "riskier" than another from a money laundering or terrorist financing perspective? Financial institutions have no definitive source for country money laundering risk. In this presentation on customer risk scoring, Laurie Kelly, CAMS explores one objective methodology financial institutions may consider to assess individual countries' money laundering risk, which in turn may be used in transaction activity monitoring, customer risk scoring and the institution's high level money laundering risk assessment.
About Alessa, a CaseWare RCM product:
Alessa is a financial crime detection, prevention and management solution offered by CaseWare RCM Inc. With deployments in more than 20 countries in banking, insurance, FinTech, gaming, manufacturing, retail and more, Alessa is the only platform organizations need to identify high-risk activities and stay ahead of compliance. To learn more about how Alessa can help your organization ensure compliance, detect complex fraud schemes, and prevent waste, abuse and misuse, visit us at caseware.com/alessa.
Connect with us online:
Visit the Alessa WEBSITE: https://www.caseware.com/alessa/
Follow Alessa on LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/caseware-alessa
Follow Alessa on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/casewarealessa
SUBSCRIBE to Alessa on YouTube: http://tiny.cc/Alessa
E-book: How to manage Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terroris...Jitske de Bruijne
Financial Institutions continue to face heightened fines and regulatory scrutiny over their AML/CFT Programs. This e-book helps you to manage AML/CFT Programs.
https://www.oceansys.com/products.aspx?showprd=OFAC-EDD%20SERVER | OFAC Screening Software offers banks a way to remain compliant and to identify parties that are participating in suspicious activity. OFAC Screening Software can monitor each and every transaction to ensure that a bank is doing everything in its power to identify these blocked persons or entities.
La tecnologia al servizio della sicurezza nei luoghi di lavoroDaniele Carnevale
Gli incidenti nei luoghi di lavoro, sono ancora oggi una triste realtà. Fortunatamente la tecnologia può aiutare molto. A-Key ed Enel Distribuzione, hanno brevettato congiuntamente una soluzione che sfrutta il paradigma alla base dell'IoT per la slavaguardia degli operatori di field.
OFAC Name Matching and False-Positive Reduction TechniquesCognizant
Exploration of Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) compliance and strategies to avoid false positives (and negatives), covering watch lists such as specially designated nationals (SDN), customer due diligence,data mining, probabilistic techniques and anti-money-laundering (AML) software.
Deloitte has been at the forefront of providing services to help clients - especially for some of the leading financial institutions - to help deal with myriad business and compliance issues presented by financial crime. See More : https://www2.deloitte.com/in/en/pages/finance/topics/forensic.html
NY State Dept of Financial Services Part 504 Daniel Connor
Based upon Sia Partners work on Part 504 topics related to AML, Sanctions, data quality and monitoring, our staff has authored this paper recognizing common challenges and proposing recommended solutions.
Identify regulatory issues relevant to potential employers in the fi.pdffazalenterprises
Identify regulatory issues relevant to potential employers in the finance industry
Solution
1. There is an increased focus on both financial and nonfinancial regulatory reporting and the
recognition by firms that data must be mapped to authorized data sources. Adding to this focus
are growing regulatory concerns over counterparty credit risk and credit risk concentrations.
Financial institutions, especially the largest organizations employees, may be challenged to
create systems that are needed to adequately manage this risk, including the capabilities to
identify, aggregate, and monitor gross exposures across the consolidated institution and by
industry.
2. Employees are expressing particular concerns about the lack of progress in eliminating manual
processes and reconciliations, addressing data integrity issues, negotiating resource and other
constraints that impact accuracy and timeliness, and fixing weaknesses in data governance.
Leading firms are responding by developing a more holistic approach to financial and
nonfinancial data management that harnesses the use of data collection for risk management and
decision-making purposes in addition to regulatory compliance.
3. Capturing and analyzing vast amounts of data in real time remain massive challenges for the
financial services industry, as regulators continue to initiate civil and criminal investigations and
levy heavy fines on broker-dealers, investment banks, insurance companies, and retail and
commercial banks based on failures to completely and accurately report required information. In
addition ensuring compliance with federal and state laws prohibiting money laundering, financial
crime, insider trading, front running, and other market manipulations and misconduct remains
critically important.
4. Many compliance employees are revaluating their overall approach to privacy and compliance
within their organizations. This includes a focus on continuous improvements to data security, IT
infrastructures, enterprise provisioning, and scalable data management controls both locally and
globally.
5. Increasing cross-border regulatory policy divergences will require internationally active
financial firm’s employees to undertake more strategic and comprehensive assessments of their
regulatory policy risks. These challenges underscore the importance of developing a centralized
process for assessing current and potential future regulatory demands using advanced
governance, risk management, and compliance regulatory change tools.
6. Under current Enhanced Prudential Standards, financial institutions employees are required to
demonstrate their ability to develop internal stress testing scenarios for both capital and liquidity
that properly reflect and aggregate the full range of their business activities and exposures as
well as the effectiveness of their governance and internal control processes in both a business-as-
usual (BAU) scenario and a stressed environment..
Don’t let the title fool you. Establishing a comprehensive AML Program may involve “Five Steps” – but the steps are giant. We’ll break them down, but each area is time-consuming and takes a focused mindset.
We don’t suggest holding someone new to the AML profession solely responsible for implementing an AML Programme. Senior Management needs to understand that there are significant financial and reputational risk exposures if you have an underdeveloped AML Programme. Seek the input of an experienced advisor rather than trying to build a programme alone if you don’t have the experience.
A powerpoint presentation giving basic insights on forensic audit,forensic auditors, how is the engagement conducted, its scope , the famous Satyam Case and the Nirav Modi case along with the RBI guidelines regarding the same. It is a presentation made for educational and awareness purpose and not to be copied or reproduced without prior consent.
Understanding Anti-Money Laundering_ A Comprehensive Guide.pdftewhimanshu23
Explore the essential aspects of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) with our comprehensive guide. Learn key practices, regulations, and strategies. For more Information Read this article
Money laundering has subjected financial institutions to losses and subjected them to punishments and fines from law/regulation bodies. Sometimes banks may fail to notice that fraudulent practices are happening in their facilities. So how can banks detect and prevent money laundering and fraud?
#RegReporting is a tough nut to crack! In his recent blog, Prakash Jalihal writes on why the process has become so complicated and explains how HEXANIKA can streamline Regulatory Reporting for banks using #BigData technology:
Traditionally, data integration has meant compromise. No matter how rapidly data architects and developers could complete a project before its deadline, speed would always come at the expense of quality. On the other hand, if they focused on delivering a quality project, it would generally drag on for months thus exceeding its deadline. Finally, if the teams concentrated on both quality and rapid delivery, the costs would invariably exceed the budget. Regardless of which path you chose, the end result would be less than desirable. This led some experts to revisit the scope of data integration. This write up shall focus on the same issue.
How Big Data helps banks know their customers betterHEXANIKA
Enterprises today mine customer data to ensure maximum success by targeting their products and solutions to the right audience. Let us have a look at how Big Data and Customer Analytics are helping businesses use their customer data for maximum benefits.
On April 14, 2016, the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority), one of the prime regulators in the United Kingdom, announced that it was preparing to launch a ‘Regulatory Sandbox’. It has started accepting applications from May 9, 2016 and successful applicants will be able to directly deploy their products in this sandbox for testing purposes. Quick to follow in their heels are regulators from Singapore and Australia, who are contemplating setting up a sandbox environment of their own.
So what is a sandbox and
High regulatory costs for small and mid sized banksHEXANIKA
Anecdotal evidence from bankers suggests that the cost of complying usually increases with new rules and regulations when large statutory changes are made to financial laws and rules of any country or region[1]. This burden increases significantly when such changes are made especially after a financial crisis. New regulations stemming from the financial crisis has cost the six largest U.S. banks $70.2 billion as of the end of last year[2]. Between the end of 2007 and the end of 2015, regulatory fines rose by more than 100% – or $35.5 billion- according to data from policy-analysis firm Federal Financial Analytics Inc. As per Federal Financial Analytics, the reporting costs come from a mix of requirements that are specific to these banks, e.g. particular capital surcharges that apply to banks with assets over $50 billion but impose the largest cost on the six biggest banks due to their size or risk
Automation is fast becoming a strategic business imperative for banks seeking to innovate whether through internal channels, acquisition or partnership. Implementing integrated automation solutions will enable banks to streamline the very tasks that are holding them back – removing manual intervention and ensuring that simple tasks are handled with speed and agility without error.
The financial industry has seen a sort of technological renaissance in the past couple of years. But this has also lead to a complex scenario where the problem has to be addressed from a global perspective; otherwise there arises the risk of running into an operational and technological chaos.
Some of the advantages of software automation are:
Regulatory Pain Points For Small And Medium Sized BanksHEXANIKA
Community and mid-sized banks are facing added regulatory burden post the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act. This pressure has caused one in four local banks to close down since 2008. Let us review the key pain points that are the reason for small and medium sized banks to feel the regulatory pressure.
The process of data warehousing is undergoing rapidtransformation, giving rise to various new terminologies, especially due to theshift from the traditional ETL to the new ELT. Forsomeone new to the process, these additional terminologies and abbreviationsmight seem overwhelming, some may even ask, “Why does it matter if the L comesbefore the T?”
The answer lies in the infrastructure and the setup. Here iswhat the fuss is all about, the sequencing of the words and more importantly,why you should be shifting from ETL to ELT.
The story of how data became big starts many years before the current buzz around big data.The history of Big Data as a term may be brief – but many of the foundations it is built on were laid many years ago. Now, let’s look at a detailed account of the major milestones in the history of sizing data volumes in the evolution of the idea of “big data” and observations pertaining to data or information explosion:
FATCA: why is it so difficult even after so many years?HEXANIKA
Under this law, all non-U.S. Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI’s) are required to search their records for U.S. persons and to report the assets and identities of such persons to the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Read the detailed report here:
The Volcker Rule: Its Implications and AftereffectsHEXANIKA
The Volcker Rule is named after Paul A. Volcker, chairman of the Federal Reserve during the 1980s and an elder statesman of the financial world. He acted as an advisor for President Obama in 2008 and was instrumental in the passing and creation of the Rule. It aims to prevent large banks from engaging in speculative trading activity with the idea that important banks support the economy by lending to consumers and businesses. We briefly explain the Volcker Rule, the challenges it brings to banks and how they can be addressed:
The Solvency II Directive, along with the Omnibus II Directive that amended it became a law on March 31, 2015. On April 1, 2015 the approval processes began, and after years of delay and negotiations, the Europe-wide capital regime for insurance companies came into effect on January 1, 2016. Insurers will have to comply with new rules and capital requirements of Solvency II across the EU.
Here is a short summary of what Solvency II is and how it’ll impact financial services institutions in the US (most of which are deemed to have fully or partly equivalent rules) along with EU.
A Review of BCBS 239: Helping banks stay compliantHEXANIKA
Although the challenge to comply with BCBS 239 is vital, the scope is immense. Now that the Jan 2016 deadline for the G-SIBs is up, the rule is expected to extend to other financial institutions and banks. The principles will also apply to all key internal risk management models including market, credit, and counterparty risk. Establishing the principle guidelines and putting core capabilities in place has its merits.
The clarity that effective risk data aggregation provides will help banks streamline their businesses, and can allow banks to make better judgments through more accurate risk analysis. Aggregated information across all channels will enable to provide comprehensive support and services to existing customers. The robust data framework also helps banks supervise and anticipate future problems, giving them a clear view for data analysis.
It can lead to gains in efficiency, reduce probability of losses and enhance strategic decision making, ultimate benefiting a bank’s profitability.
Dodd-Frank's Impact on Regulatory ReportingHEXANIKA
We previously analyzed how Dodd-Frank and how the new regulations have impacted large banks as well as midsize and small banks. This time, we will look at how the law meant to address one issue (avoid a financial meltdown similar to 2008) might have created other challenges for banks – the most important one that of regulatory reporting:
Regulatory impact on small and midsize banksHEXANIKA
Recent CCAR and Dodd-Frank Stress Tests have concluded that banks are severely under the lurch due to regulatory compliance issues, small and midsize banks being the most affected. We explain the impact in brief.
The European Unemployment Puzzle: implications from population agingGRAPE
We study the link between the evolving age structure of the working population and unemployment. We build a large new Keynesian OLG model with a realistic age structure, labor market frictions, sticky prices, and aggregate shocks. Once calibrated to the European economy, we quantify the extent to which demographic changes over the last three decades have contributed to the decline of the unemployment rate. Our findings yield important implications for the future evolution of unemployment given the anticipated further aging of the working population in Europe. We also quantify the implications for optimal monetary policy: lowering inflation volatility becomes less costly in terms of GDP and unemployment volatility, which hints that optimal monetary policy may be more hawkish in an aging society. Finally, our results also propose a partial reversal of the European-US unemployment puzzle due to the fact that the share of young workers is expected to remain robust in the US.
What website can I sell pi coins securely.DOT TECH
Currently there are no website or exchange that allow buying or selling of pi coins..
But you can still easily sell pi coins, by reselling it to exchanges/crypto whales interested in holding thousands of pi coins before the mainnet launch.
Who is a pi merchant?
A pi merchant is someone who buys pi coins from miners and resell to these crypto whales and holders of pi..
This is because pi network is not doing any pre-sale. The only way exchanges can get pi is by buying from miners and pi merchants stands in between the miners and the exchanges.
How can I sell my pi coins?
Selling pi coins is really easy, but first you need to migrate to mainnet wallet before you can do that. I will leave the telegram contact of my personal pi merchant to trade with.
Tele-gram.
@Pi_vendor_247
Poonawalla Fincorp and IndusInd Bank Introduce New Co-Branded Credit Cardnickysharmasucks
The unveiling of the IndusInd Bank Poonawalla Fincorp eLITE RuPay Platinum Credit Card marks a notable milestone in the Indian financial landscape, showcasing a successful partnership between two leading institutions, Poonawalla Fincorp and IndusInd Bank. This co-branded credit card not only offers users a plethora of benefits but also reflects a commitment to innovation and adaptation. With a focus on providing value-driven and customer-centric solutions, this launch represents more than just a new product—it signifies a step towards redefining the banking experience for millions. Promising convenience, rewards, and a touch of luxury in everyday financial transactions, this collaboration aims to cater to the evolving needs of customers and set new standards in the industry.
when will pi network coin be available on crypto exchange.DOT TECH
There is no set date for when Pi coins will enter the market.
However, the developers are working hard to get them released as soon as possible.
Once they are available, users will be able to exchange other cryptocurrencies for Pi coins on designated exchanges.
But for now the only way to sell your pi coins is through verified pi vendor.
Here is the telegram contact of my personal pi vendor
@Pi_vendor_247
Falcon stands out as a top-tier P2P Invoice Discounting platform in India, bridging esteemed blue-chip companies and eager investors. Our goal is to transform the investment landscape in India by establishing a comprehensive destination for borrowers and investors with diverse profiles and needs, all while minimizing risk. What sets Falcon apart is the elimination of intermediaries such as commercial banks and depository institutions, allowing investors to enjoy higher yields.
Financial Assets: Debit vs Equity Securities.pptxWrito-Finance
financial assets represent claim for future benefit or cash. Financial assets are formed by establishing contracts between participants. These financial assets are used for collection of huge amounts of money for business purposes.
Two major Types: Debt Securities and Equity Securities.
Debt Securities are Also known as fixed-income securities or instruments. The type of assets is formed by establishing contracts between investor and issuer of the asset.
• The first type of Debit securities is BONDS. Bonds are issued by corporations and government (both local and national government).
• The second important type of Debit security is NOTES. Apart from similarities associated with notes and bonds, notes have shorter term maturity.
• The 3rd important type of Debit security is TRESURY BILLS. These securities have short-term ranging from three months, six months, and one year. Issuer of such securities are governments.
• Above discussed debit securities are mostly issued by governments and corporations. CERTIFICATE OF DEPOSITS CDs are issued by Banks and Financial Institutions. Risk factor associated with CDs gets reduced when issued by reputable institutions or Banks.
Following are the risk attached with debt securities: Credit risk, interest rate risk and currency risk
There are no fixed maturity dates in such securities, and asset’s value is determined by company’s performance. There are two major types of equity securities: common stock and preferred stock.
Common Stock: These are simple equity securities and bear no complexities which the preferred stock bears. Holders of such securities or instrument have the voting rights when it comes to select the company’s board of director or the business decisions to be made.
Preferred Stock: Preferred stocks are sometime referred to as hybrid securities, because it contains elements of both debit security and equity security. Preferred stock confers ownership rights to security holder that is why it is equity instrument
<a href="https://www.writofinance.com/equity-securities-features-types-risk/" >Equity securities </a> as a whole is used for capital funding for companies. Companies have multiple expenses to cover. Potential growth of company is required in competitive market. So, these securities are used for capital generation, and then uses it for company’s growth.
Concluding remarks
Both are employed in business. Businesses are often established through debit securities, then what is the need for equity securities. Companies have to cover multiple expenses and expansion of business. They can also use equity instruments for repayment of debits. So, there are multiple uses for securities. As an investor, you need tools for analysis. Investment decisions are made by carefully analyzing the market. For better analysis of the stock market, investors often employ financial analysis of companies.
Currently pi network is not tradable on binance or any other exchange because we are still in the enclosed mainnet.
Right now the only way to sell pi coins is by trading with a verified merchant.
What is a pi merchant?
A pi merchant is someone verified by pi network team and allowed to barter pi coins for goods and services.
Since pi network is not doing any pre-sale The only way exchanges like binance/huobi or crypto whales can get pi is by buying from miners. And a merchant stands in between the exchanges and the miners.
I will leave the telegram contact of my personal pi merchant. I and my friends has traded more than 6000pi coins successfully
Tele-gram
@Pi_vendor_247
Turin Startup Ecosystem 2024 - Ricerca sulle Startup e il Sistema dell'Innov...Quotidiano Piemontese
Turin Startup Ecosystem 2024
Una ricerca de il Club degli Investitori, in collaborazione con ToTeM Torino Tech Map e con il supporto della ESCP Business School e di Growth Capital
Empowering the Unbanked: The Vital Role of NBFCs in Promoting Financial Inclu...Vighnesh Shashtri
In India, financial inclusion remains a critical challenge, with a significant portion of the population still unbanked. Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) have emerged as key players in bridging this gap by providing financial services to those often overlooked by traditional banking institutions. This article delves into how NBFCs are fostering financial inclusion and empowering the unbanked.
how to sell pi coins in South Korea profitably.DOT TECH
Yes. You can sell your pi network coins in South Korea or any other country, by finding a verified pi merchant
What is a verified pi merchant?
Since pi network is not launched yet on any exchange, the only way you can sell pi coins is by selling to a verified pi merchant, and this is because pi network is not launched yet on any exchange and no pre-sale or ico offerings Is done on pi.
Since there is no pre-sale, the only way exchanges can get pi is by buying from miners. So a pi merchant facilitates these transactions by acting as a bridge for both transactions.
How can i find a pi vendor/merchant?
Well for those who haven't traded with a pi merchant or who don't already have one. I will leave the telegram id of my personal pi merchant who i trade pi with.
Tele gram: @Pi_vendor_247
#pi #sell #nigeria #pinetwork #picoins #sellpi #Nigerian #tradepi #pinetworkcoins #sellmypi
Exploring Abhay Bhutada’s Views After Poonawalla Fincorp’s Collaboration With...beulahfernandes8
The financial landscape in India has witnessed a significant development with the recent collaboration between Poonawalla Fincorp and IndusInd Bank.
The launch of the co-branded credit card, the IndusInd Bank Poonawalla Fincorp eLITE RuPay Platinum Credit Card, marks a major milestone for both entities.
This strategic move aims to redefine and elevate the banking experience for customers.
1. Overview Of SAR (Suspicious Activity
Reporting)
Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) forms the cornerstone of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and provides
critical financial information to combat terrorist financing, money laundering, and other financial crimes.
To comply with this requirement, it is essential for financial institutions to have in place sophisticated
monitoring and reporting processes capable of identifying and monitoring transactions and activities.
Financial Institutions need capable and adequate staff to successfully identify, research and report
suspicious activities.
To successfully identify the parties involved in any suspicious activity or money laundering/fraud
processes, timely identification and reporting of the same is crucial. The Financial Crimes Enforcement
Network ('FinCEN') has instituted various changes and updates to the requirements to enhance the
process.
We will take a look at SAR requirements and challenges for financial institutions and focus on the
solutions that can be enacted to stay compliant.
What is a SAR?
A Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) is a uniform reporting document filed by financial institutions to the
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in the case of a suspected incident of money laundering
or fraud. These reports were brought into play under the United States Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) of 1970.
As of April 1, 2013, this is the only acceptable format for submitting suspicious activity reports to
FinCEN. 1
1
FINCEN: FAQs on SAR
2. Screenshot of FINCEN SAR Report Generator
A SAR must be filed within 30 days after the date of initial detection of the suspicious activity. Financial
institutions are required to keep a copy of the SAR and the original business record of any supporting
documentation for five years. Federal law requires that financial institution and its directors, officers,
employees and agents who report suspected activities or known violations are strictly banned from
disclosing any information to the person involved in the transaction about that transaction being
reported.2
A transaction includes a deposit; a withdrawal; a transfer between accounts; an exchange of currency;
an extension of credit; a purchase or sale of any stock, bond, certificate of deposit, or other monetary
instrument or investment security; or any other payment, transfer, or delivery by, though, or to a bank.
Since February 24, 2012, the FinCEN regulatory body made extensions and exemptions to allow FinCEN
reports to be filed electronically. This step was taken in an effort to improve efficiency, reduce
government and industry costs, and enhance the ability of investigators, analysts, and examiners to gain
better and timely access to important financial information.3
Challenges for SAR
Financial institutions and their employees face civil and criminal penalties for failing to properly file
suspicious activity reports, including large fines or added regulatory restrictions. Total monetary
settlements levied for money laundering, sanctions and tax evasion by the regulators and law
enforcement agencies surpassed $13.4 billion for the year 2014. Four international banks paid U.S.
authorities more than $300 million each, with some paying out significantly more.4
Suspicious activity monitoring and reporting are critical internal controls, which require enhanced
systems to ensure proper surveillance (automation), transaction identification and matching, or a
combination of these. Banks should also employ sufficient resources keeping in mind their overall risk
profile and transaction volume.
Meticulous Identification and Monitoring Requirements
A transaction monitoring system typically targets specific types of transactions, prominently those
targeting large amounts of cash and/or those from foreign geographies, and includes a manual review of
various reports in order to identify unusual activities. These include currency activity reports, funds
transfers reports, monetary instrument sales reports, significant balance change reports, ATM
transaction reports, nonsufficient funds (NFS) reports and more. The process involves review of daily
reports or reports that cover a particular timespan or a combination of both.
This creates various challenges:
2
TechTarget: Suspicious Activity Report (SAR)
3
FinCEN: FinCEN Reports Going Paperless
4
Kaufmann Rossin: Regulators Issued Fewer AML Fines in 2014, But Packed a Bigger Punch
3. 1. Handling large data volumes: Most legacy systems are incapable of analysis and storage of large
data volumes.
2. Updates to identification rules: Banks deploy a certain set of filters or rules to help identify
certain behavior that it deems ‘suspicious’. As the definition of "suspicious" keeps being
updated, the process of updating the system with new rules can be time consuming and
complex.
3. Innumerable data sources: For creation of reports, the system refers to data from disparate
sources, requiring frequent backtracking and cross checking. When dealing with large quantities
of data, data lineage and linkage issues might crop up, eventually leading to the next challenge.
4. Data Accuracy: Reviewers need to constantly crosscheck the data source and match the data
fetched in reports to ensure that the data is accurate. As SAR requires suspicious activities to be
reported within a particular timeframe, ensuring data quality becomes even more critical.
5. Frequent Report Generation and Updating: Although FinCEN has provided sufficient
streamlining in the reporting format requirement, bank generated reports need to be update
from time to time to remain up to date.
The Components for SAR Compliance
The five key components to an effective monitoring and reporting system are:
1. Identification or alert of unusual activity (which may include: employee identification, law
enforcement inquiries, other referrals, and transaction and surveillance monitoring system
output).
2. Managing alerts.
3. SAR decision making.
4. SAR completion and filing.
5. Monitoring and SAR filing on continuing activity.
These components are present in banks of all sizes. However, the structure and formality of the
components may vary. Larger banks will typically have greater differentiation and distinction between
functions, and may devote entire departments to the completion of each component. Smaller banks
may use one or more employees to complete several tasks (e.g., review of monitoring reports, research
activity, and completion of the actual SAR).5
Hexanika: Innovation via Automation
Hexanika is a FinTech Big Data software company, which has developed an end to end solution for
financial institutions to address data sourcing and reporting challenges for regulatory compliance.
The challenges of SAR for financial institutions are to implement sophisticated mechanisms required to
identify suspicious transactions and activities and generate proper reports in a timely and concise
5
FFIEC: Suspicious Activity Reporting—Overview
4. manner. Hexanika helps establish a compliance platform that streamlines the process of data
integration, analytics and reporting. Our software platform can develop and clean data to be sourced for
reporting and automation, simplifying the processes of data governance and generating timely and
accurate reports to be submitted to regulators in the correct formats.
To know more about our products and solutions, read: http://hexanika.com/company-profile/
Contact Us
USA
249 East 48 Street,
New York, NY 10017
Tel: +1 646.733.6636
INDIA
Krupa Bungalow 1187/10,
Shivaji Nagar, Pune 411005
Tel: +91 9850686861
Email: info@hexanika.com
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