How banks are using AI in financial crime and compliance
Artificial intelligence has moved firmly into the mainstream of bank compliance operations, according to new research carried out by Hawk and Chartis.
The study shows that banks are no longer debating whether AI has a role in financial crime and compliance, but are instead focused on how to scale it responsibly across core functions.
The findings reveal that 89% of compliance and risk leaders say their institution encourages the use of AI, while 70% report that AI is already being tested or piloted within their organisation.
These insights are explored in the report AI in Financial Crime and Compliance: Charting the Path from Pilot to Maturity, which examines how banks are applying AI today and where adoption remains uneven.
Fraud prevention has emerged as the most mature use case across financial crime and compliance. One-third of banks surveyed are already using AI at scale or operationally to prevent fraud, while a further 32% are piloting AI-based solutions. Another 28% are actively exploring its use, and notably, no respondents reported having no AI usage in anti-fraud programmes.
AML transaction monitoring ranks as the second most advanced area, with 22% of banks reporting operational or at-scale AI deployment. Sanctions screening follows at 16%, while case management and investigations currently trail behind at 12%.
Regulatory reporting remains the least mature function for AI adoption. Only 9% of banks actively use AI in regulatory reporting, while 17% report no usage at all, the highest non-adoption rate across all financial crime and compliance areas.
At the same time, regulatory reporting shows the highest level of informal AI use, with 31% of respondents saying individuals rely on AI on an ad hoc basis.
Machine learning continues to underpin most AI deployments across compliance. It is used by 75% of banks in case management and investigations, 66% in fraud prevention and 65% in AML transaction monitoring. Natural language processing also plays a significant role, particularly in investigations and regulatory reporting.
For more insights into the growth of AI, download the reports here. There are two editions to the report: Banking and Payment & FinTech.