In today’s interconnected financial system, Transaction Monitoring (TM) has become a fundamental element of a Financial Institution (FI) control framework, which is vital in the ongoing fight against financial crime by identifying and stopping the flow of illicit transactions. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates the amount of money laundered globally per year to be approximately 2% - 5% of global Gross Domestic Profit (GDP), which highlights the growing need for FIs to implement a robust TM program.

This whitepaper explores the importance of having an effective TM framework in place to remain compliant, avoid regulatory breaches, spot financial crimes before they take place, aid the adoption of a risk-based approach and to better understand and service customers.

The publication further provides an overview on the challenges in the existing TM landscape such as poor data quality and regulatory consequences; the benefits of the optimisation process for instance, enhanced efficiency, cost reduction and optimal client segmentation; and how to improve the existing TM system.