Vishal Relhan
- Financial institutions in EMEA face a "perfect storm" of rising financial crime, stricter regulations and resource constraints – making efficient risk screening more critical than ever
- Our latest report reveals that 98% of leaders value real-time data, but delays and manual reviews still hold back progress
Our latest risk intelligence report for EMEA, based on a global research survey, takes a detailed look at the on-the-ground challenges facing financial institutions in the region and unpacks the perceived high value of trusted real-time data.
The insights from 400 risk and compliance leaders in France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Spain, Switzerland, UAE and UK reveal persistent delays and inefficiencies in screening processes – and finds that half (50%) of all respondents in the region believe access to real-time data can help them manage fast-moving risk more effectively.
Our report calls out a "perfect storm" of rising financial crime, ever-stricter regulatory requirements and limited resources and delves into most persistent challenges that financial institutions face today – as well as the key elements that can help to solve these challenges going forward.
Key findings in EMEA
- 81% across EMEA experience screening-related delays "at least occasionally".
- A substantial 98% of respondents in the region say access to real-time sanctions and risk data is important to their compliance workflows, but barriers to adoption remain, with 43% saying that manual review is required regardless of data speed.
- Institutions across the region value the potential of AI and automation, and are the most explicit about ensuring that AI does not replace humans.
What challenges persist today?
Our report reveals widespread delays in screening, with 81% of respondents saying they experience screening-related delays "at least occasionally". Stark regional differences are apparent, however, with this percentage rising to 88% in Switzerland and falling to 66% in the UK.
The most commonly reported challenges when screening for sanctions, PEPs and adverse media screening in EMEA are manual review and remediation workload (78%), integration issues with existing systems (76%) and high false positives (74%).
The same challenges top the list of global responses, but the order differs. Again, regional variations are apparent: manual review is more widely reported in Italy (88%), integration issues are highlighted most in Switzerland (88%), and high levels of false positives are reported by the most respondents in UAE (98%).
When asked how confident they are in the accuracy and completeness of their current sanctions and risk screening data, 45% in EMEA report that they are "very confident". This compares to 44% in APAC and 53% in North America.
Is real-time data valued?
A substantial 98% of EMEA respondents consider real-time data important to their compliance workflows.
Across all markets surveyed, real-time data access also emerges as the most important factor when considering a customer screening tool – and this sentiment is reflected in EMEA.
Looking at the many benefits of data being available in real time, EMEA respondents note that it helps them to manage fast-moving risk more effectively (50%), avoid using outdated data (49%) and monitor risk continuously (48%).
Despite the value that respondents place on access to real-time data, there are widespread hurdles to adoption – the top barriers reported in the region are that manual review is required regardless of data speed (43%), and budget or resource constraints (41%).
AI has a role to play, but so do humans
Alongside the essential role of real-time data, financial institutions in EMEA also value automation and AI integration. 21% of respondents say that automation and AI integration could improve the effectiveness of their risk screening processes.
Importantly, a key insight evident across all regions surveyed is that respondents believe AI should enhance, not replace human judgement. This sentiment is even more pronounced in EMEA than in other regions surveyed.
Our report concludes that selecting the right risk intelligence partner is key – and that in order to ensure efficacy in fighting financial crime, such a partner should bring accurate, real-time data, advanced technology, and trusted human expertise to the table.
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