PWC has bolstered its financial crime operations by buying anti-money laundering and sanctions screening tool KYC-Pro.
PwC’s Belfast-based change management division, PWC Operate, has purchased the tool from Irish consultancy FSCom.
The global professional services firm said KYC-Pro supplements its expanding technology portfolio, which supports clients with solutions based on Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics and other forms of smart automation.
KYC-Pro enables customers access to over 127 million companies worldwide, conduct individual AML checks across more than 20 countries and cross reference potential customers against international PEPs and Sanctions lists.
The tool combines fscom’s deep knowledge of financial services regulation with the databases and intuitive technology to help customers meet their regulatory requirements.
PwC partner Ian McConnell said: “We are always on the lookout to invest in cutting-edge technologies which help our clients to grow their businesses. AI and automation can deliver significant benefits for organisations and people and, by incorporating KYC-Pro to our existing regulatory compliance offering, it complements the significant presence we already have in the financial crime operations space.
“Not only will this service deliver clients significant financial savings, it will also free people to become more productive. This is part of our responsible technology policy which focuses on maximising positive impacts whilst minimising any negative ones.”
PwC says the acquisition, which will strengthen its business in the financial crime arena, was motivated by research which suggests that by 2020, European banks will spend more than €1bn annually on their KYC management.
Four years ago, PwC was fined $25m by New York State after it sanitised a report for regulators into anti-money laundering at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (BTMU). Its regulatory consultancy business was banned for two years from working for banks regulated by the state’s Department of Financial Services.
Fscom director Philip Creed added: “The rapid expansion of the FinTech industry and continued changes in regulation require that we focus our efforts on our core consulting business. Through PwC, KYC-Pro has the potential to become a global brand which offers compliance officers peace of mind, both in terms of its accuracy and regulatory compliance.”
Copyright © 2018 RegTech Analyst
Copyright © 2018 RegTech Analyst
