Anti-Money Laundering Compliance and Detection

Anti-money laundering (AML) fines and penalties amounted to a staggering $2.3 billion in 2021. While this was less than the $3.2 billion in 2020, the number of financial institutions being fined went from 24 up to 80. It’s important to remember that even if you stop money laundering in its tracks, you may still need to file suspicious activity reports to stay compliant. ‍ Even something as simple as failing to report a suspicious transaction or not being thorough enough in your investigation of money laundering claims can put you in violation and result in millions of dollars in fines. Based on regulations, a financial institution must note any suspicious activity, and then have an internal system of compliance specialists investigate these claims for potential money laundering. AML analysts typically spend up to 90% of their time simply collecting the necessary data and information to perform the investigation, and only 10% of their time actually investigating.