Moody’s Talks: Risk Reframed

As regulatory stakes grow higher, so does the need for reliable, comprehensive data when evaluating risk. Enter: the Moody’s Entity Verification API. In a single source, this powerful tool layers curated data on over 525 million global companies along with real-time entity information from primary sources. Here to share more on the making of this tool and its value in a compliance program are Johanna Konrad, Moody’s Compliance & third-party risk Managing Director of Product Management, and Jon Hanmer, Moody’s Sales Senior Director. Joining host, Alex Pillow, they discussed:

• How direct customer feedback shaped what the Entity Verification API delivers
• How the solution benefits stakeholders in different sectors
• Why strong entity verification lays the groundwork for a “golden record,” and why that matters
• Enablement of practitioners to monitor entities in a perpetual KYC (pKYC) program

For more information about the Moody’s Entity Verification API, visit our website. If you’d like to book a demo or learn more, please get in touch; we would love to hear from you!

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The term “Entity Verification” can mean different things to different people. Perhaps it brings to mind beneficial ownership, identity checks, or third-party risk management. Regardless, Entity Verification is the bedrock for understanding who you are doing business with.

We are pleased to welcome back guest, Paul Nola, Partner at Context Consulting, for this episode of Moody’s Talks: KYC Decoded. Paul walks us through the findings of Moody’s latest study on Entity Verification. In addition to sharing how the study was conducted and some of the results of the report, Paul and host, Alex Pillow, discuss common themes that emerged, such as:

• Why the time is now to be ramping up Entity Verification programs
• Challenges that can make Entity Verification difficult to implement
• The downstream benefits of a strong Entity Verification foundation
• The need for proper and robust data governance
• How AI is being used to make Entity Verification scale in a quick, reliable way
• The elusive ‘golden record’ - a single view of a data entity

You can find more information about Entity Verification on our website, or check out the resource below:
 

• Who are you doing business with? A Moody’s study into Entity Verification

If you would like to learn more about Moody’s Entity Verification data offerings, please get in touch – we would love to hear from you.

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You may recognize him as Moody’s Talks: KYC Decoded editor and producer, but, Mark Rundle, has a passion for storytelling that extends beyond podcasting. Mark is also a brilliant documentary filmmaker, and we are excited to have him join us behind the microphone in this week’s episode, discussing his recent three-part documentary series, The Infinite Game. These 10-minute episodes provide a searing view into the world of corruption, money laundering, and, most importantly, the people who are affected by these crimes. 

Follow along for a behind-the-scenes look at:

• The inspiration for making this series
• The creative process for structuring a compelling narrative
• What he hopes viewers will take away from The Infinite Game

Be sure to watch the series, or watch again if you have already seen it on our website or YouTube. And, to take another step forward, learn how Moody’s can better equip you and your organization to combat financial crime. Get in touch – we would love to hear from you.

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The art and science of screening in the KYC and AML world has certainly come a long way from the days of manually checking for names and organizations against a short list. Risk factors have evolved exponentially, increasing regulations have influenced risk appetites, and powerful technologies like Machine Learning (ML) and Generative AI (GenAI) have caught on like wildfire. 

In this episode of KYC Decoded, in-house experts Mike Xu, Data Strategy Director, and Victor Cotillon, Risk & Screening Product Strategist, provide valuable insights into the role of Machine Learning when screening. Highlights of their conversation with host, Alex Pillow, include:

• What screening means and why it is performed by KYC and AML practitioners
• The concept of ‘fuzzy matching’
• How technologies help weed out false positives when name matching
• Pros and cons of integrating ML into an intelligent screening process
• Keep human’s in the loop when using more sophisticated ML

Interested in learning more? Check out the resources below mentioned in this episode:

• Coursera
• Moody’s AI in Compliance resources

If you want to learn more about intelligent risk and compliance screening for your organization, please visit our website and feel free to reach out – we would love to hear from you!

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Anti-financial crime (AFC) departments can get labeled as the team that says “no” - seen as preventing innovation from reaching customers. But, this line of thinking overlooks the immense value AFC teams can bring in the product development process. How can AML and compliance professionals break through the stereotype to become more influential partners in business growth?

In this episode of KYC Decoded, AML professional Erika Postel, passionately shares her expertise when it comes to thriving at the intersection of business expansion, compliance, and customer experience. Her conversation with host, Alex Pillow, addresses questions such as:

• When should AML and compliance teams brought into a project?
• How to juggle multiple jurisdictions and/or multiple product launches simultaneously?
• How can teams proactively work with regulatory bodies?
• How can AML departments best support business expansion with ever increasing digitization?

For more information, please check out the resources that were mentioned in the episode below:

• ACAMS website
• American Bankers Association

To take the next step in transforming the compliance culture in your organization, visit our website and get in touch – we’d love to hear from you.

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Fancy cars. Diamond-covered watches. Luxury vacations at 5-star resorts. These are some of the many high-ticket purchases money launderers might illegally make to disguise the origins of their wealth.

So, what actions can be taken to fight this nefarious activity? How can businesses and consumers avoid complicity and prevent financial crime in the luxury goods' space?

We are thrilled to welcome back esteemed guest and expert, Jessica Cath, Head of Financial Crime at Thistle Initiatives. Her dynamic and engaging conversation with host, Alex Pillow, dives into questions like:

• What constitutes a luxury good?
• What are the three stages of money laundering?
• What role do secondary markets play in luxury goods' money laundering?
• What risk-based measures can businesses take to protect their reputations and meet regulatory obligations?
• How can individual consumers make more responsible purchasing decisions to avoid unintentionally abetting financial criminal?

If you are keen to learn more about luxury goods and AML, we encourage you to check out these additional resources:

• It’s the luxuries that give it away. To fight corruption, follow the goods by Dr. Reza Tajaddini and Dr. Hassan F. Gholipour
• Bribery and Corruption: An Unholy Cocktail of Outsider and Insider Threats | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)
• Art market participants guidance for money laundering supervision - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
• Money laundering supervision for high value dealers - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
• Understanding the Art Market and Anti-Money Laundering Regulations | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

And, if you can’t get enough of Jessica, listen to the last KYC Decoded episode she joined us for - pKYC Miniseries: Part 3.

To take your anti-money laundering practices a step further, please feel free to get in touch with the Moody's team – we’d love to hear from you.

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Open finance, API banking, Payment Services Directive (PSD2)...the concept of open banking can be called many things. But how exactly is this technology changing the world for risk and compliance professionals today and what potential does it have to mold the profession going forward?

Join us for another episode of KYC Decoded as we welcome Alessio Balduini, CEO and founder of Credit Data Research, and Francis Marinier, former banking compliance officer and now Moody’s KYC Industry Practice Lead, who together unpack the topic of open banking and its implications for the financial industry. Key questions explored include:

• What is open banking and how long has it been around?
• What opportunities does open banking provide for risk and compliance professionals?
• What does adoption of open banking look like?
• Are there any potential risks associated with open banking?
• How might bad actors respond to the rise of open banking?

If you would like more information on open banking, be sure to check out these resources:

• Open Banking Impact Report
• Open Banking Limited (OBL)
• Credit Data Research
• "Evolution of Open Finance: A Focus on the European and Italian Landscapes", International Banker
• "Open Finance ecosystem could end money laundering in sports betting in Brazil", Games Magazine Brazil

Visit our website to learn how you can take your compliance program to the next level. Please feel free to reach out – we would love to hear from you.

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What if your anti-financial crime program could build investigation models using sensitive data you may not have direct access to – in a totally compliant way? In this episode, we learn from Privacy Enhancing Technology (PET) expert, Michael Hughes, Chief Business Offer at Duality Technologies, about the potential PETs have to change the game of KYC.

Follow along as Michael and host, Alex Pillow, discuss all things PETs, exploring topics like:

• The value PETs could bring to the world of AFC
• Privacy rights of an individual vs. useful data for institutions
• Various PET use cases
• How regulatory bodies feel about the rise of PETs
• Industry sectors that have become early adopters of PETs (the answer may surprise you)

For additional resources mentioned in this episode, check out the links below on Duality’s website:

• Zero footprint investigations
• Collaborative AI

Visit our website to learn how Moody’s Compliance and third-party risk management can take AFC in your organization to the next level, and please feel free to get in touch – we’d love to hear from you!

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It is safe to say technology has done wonders when it comes to AML professionals tackling financial crime, but, on the flip side, it is important to understand how technology is being used by those committing the crimes.

From video game online marketplaces to virtual currency mixers, how can we follow the money when tech is used to cover its tracks?

In this episode of KYC Decoded, we welcome back esteemed guest, Geoff White, investigative journalist and author of the upcoming book, Rinsed: From Cartels to Crypto: How the Tech Industry Washes Money for the World’s Deadliest Crooks.

Get an inside look at some of the crimes that are featured in Rinsed, and listen as Geoff and host, Alex Pillow, explore questions like:

• How has the digitization of currency impacted the way criminals launder money?
• Is there a future where crypto can be crime-free?
• What role does social media play for bad actors?
• Should technology companies be held accountable for how money launderers use them?

Rinsed is available for preorder and will be published on June 13, 2024. To take the AML and compliance programs in your organization to the next level, be sure to check out our website and get in touch – we’d love to hear from you.

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Change is essential to survive and thrive in any enterprise. As we narrow in on the world of AML and KYC, the adaptation of sophisticated criminals is evident, so the question arises: what disruptions are needed to outsmart these bad actors? In this episode of KYC Decoded, Head of Strategy & Content at Sardine, Simon Taylor, lends us his astute and perceptive expertise as we explore this questions further. 

You won’t want to miss this energetic and educational conversation with host, Alex Pillow. Their wide-ranging discussion covers topics like:

• The different areas of KYC and AML that have the greatest opportunities for disruption
• The role of advancing technologies and how they might be used in particular use cases
• How change could impact industry professionals

If you enjoyed listening to this episode, be sure to check out the recommended resources mentioned in the show:

• Sardine.ai webinars
• Sardine.ai blog
• Follow Soups Ranjan on LinkedIn

If you are a change-maker looking to disrupt the KYC and AML processes in your organization, be sure to visit our website and get in touch – we would love to hear from you.
 

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