Tag: insights

Sanctions name screening is often discussed in abstract terms, yet many of its most consequential challenges are easiest to understand through concrete examples. Variations in spelling, language, script, and naming conventions regularly undermine otherwise well-intentioned screening controls. The result is often a combination of excessive alert volumes and missed matches that are only discovered after…

By: Pranjal Dubey and Chandrakant Maheshwari Executive framing This article examines how sanctions screening systems can be validated in a manner consistent with regulatory expectations (such as SR 11-7), using Yanez Compliance as a reference implementation. The purpose is educational: to explain how abstract model validation concepts translate into operational practice. The discussion does not endorse…

Robert L. Williams III is fighting financial crime with the help of AI. I feel the need to begin by stating that, in my illustrious AFC career spanning over twenty years, the NYC Global AML & Sanctions Symposium hosted by the Coalition Against Financial Crime was hands down the most outstanding session I have ever attended! The…

Introduction As global financial connections deepen and cross-border transactions become more common, the digital payment landscape is increasingly exposed to complex risks—especially in the area of fraud detection. Motivated by nearly a decade of experience applying technology in the financial industry, I set out to improve how we detect fraud in real-time international payment systems…

By: Sharon Blanchette At an industry roundtable event in late 2024, attended by Anti-Financial Crime (AFC) Officers from financial institutions of all sizes—including myself—the topic turned to Fraud Risk Assessments. The comments that followed were eye-opening. Very few AFC Officers had a positive experience with the vendors they engaged to perform Fraud Risk Assessments in…

What Does Success for Partnerships Look Like Amidst Risk in the World’s Hottest Fintech Market? As we enter 2025, fintech partnerships worldwide are creating dynamic financial services ecosystems. Driven by changing technological dynamics and buoyed by significant customer opportunities, the fintech market—particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC)—strives for rapid transformation into a world-class…

Unveiling the Layers of the Internet The dark web is a part of the internet made up of websites, forums, and marketplaces that require specialized browsers to access, ensuring user anonymity. Unlike the clear web, dark web content is encrypted and not indexed by standard search engines. Originally a niche for privacy-focused activities, the dark…

While "pig butchering" may sound like a rural pastime, it’s a chilling substitute for one of the most deceitful forms of financial crime today. The term "Pig Butchering" is a translation from the Chinese term 'shu zhu pan,' found by investigators to be used by Asian scammers when referring to their victims coldly, which can…

As a society, fraud has run rampant for many years. There is always a desire to cheat the system and find a way to make money. Since COVID, the influx in these cases has risen at an exponential pace. The finance industry has worked tirelessly to control the rise of fraud cases but with the evolution…

The rise of real-time deepfakes presents a new and transformative threat in fraud. A deepfake is a digitally altered video or voice designed to represent someone else, typically used maliciously or to spread false information. However, with advancements in technology, criminals are no longer limited to pre-recorded manipulations. They can now deploy deepfakes in live interactions, creating a seamless…

We are excited to announce the launch of the Coalition Against Financial Crime (CAFC), a groundbreaking initiative dedicated to fostering unparalleled collaboration across all sectors engaged in the fight against financial crime. Our mission at CAFC is clear and resolute: Bridging Communities For A Safer Financial World ™. We aim to achieve this by developing…

Olamikan Gbemiga / Associated Press - Tigran Gambaryan attends a court hearing at the federal High Courts, in Abuja, Nigeria in April 2024. The highly publicized detention of Tigran Gambaryan in Nigeria has sent shockwaves through the global anti-financial crime (AFC) compliance community. Gambaryan, the head of financial crime compliance at Binance, was detained in February…