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In today’s global economy, opportunities for growth are often accompanied by an increasingly complex landscape of rules, regulations and compliance issues. Since compliance is now an element of everyday business operations, businesses must employ a measured, holistic program with several key components, including real-time watch list screening.
Through new technology, organizations can more easily develop new lines of business and reach new markets. But as business functions grow and transactions become more complex, how can companies ensure they are not engaging in business with illicit parties or supporting illegal activity? CSI’s Sanctions Compliance: Deploying Real-Time Watch List Screening white paper examines the compliance challenges companies face regarding real-time sanctions screening, possible technology solutions and recommendations for next steps.
Companies must screen all customers and transactions against various sanctions lists to ensure no illicit activity occurs, including preventing prohibited individuals or organizations from making purchases or completing certain transactions. In today’s fast-paced environment, watch list screening must be conducted in a timely manner to accurately identify customers and vendors. One bad transaction or customer can have serious consequences, making real-time transaction screening an essential component of a compliance solution.
As businesses work to strike a balance between risk management and speed, there are four major challenges to address: the breadth and depth of data sources, the need for accurate translation and transliteration from foreign languages, robust monitoring of payment flows and ensuring that sanctions screening seamlessly integrates with the movement of goods.
Monitoring payment flows is among the challenges explored in this white paper, as the number of transaction sources in an organization can contribute to the complexity of sanctions screening. An effective watch list screening program should be able to handle payment flows at any scale while ensuring that all parties and transactions are screened against appropriate lists in compliance with industry regulations—all without sacrificing the customer experience.
Though businesses face challenges in deploying real-time screening, the benefits far outweigh the risks. Effective sanctions screening protocols not only ensure that businesses avoid costly mistakes from facilitating illicit transactions but can also lead to enhanced compliance operations. The most effective solutions will deliver advantages that include connecting both large volumes of disparate data streams and isolated compliance functions as well as the ability to scale alongside growing business operations.
To manage both expectations and compliance, companies must seek a real-time watch list solution that integrates into their own systems and keeps up with watch list changes and regulatory expectations. Any real-time screening solution should be scalable and responsive to an organization’s evolving needs.
When it comes to sanctions compliance, modern-day operations require real-time solutions. Read CSI’s Sanctions Compliance: Deploying Real-Time Watch List Screening white paper to learn more about the challenges of implementing a holistic compliance program and find out how your business can streamline real-time screening with technology solutions.
