Third of finance firms accelerate use of artificial intelligence to detect money laundering

Finance firms are stepping up their investments in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) as part of their anti-money laundering (AML) investments. Covid-19 and the disruption it brought to the global economy has triggered a sudden increase in financial crime, with money laundering a threat to society. The UN estimates that up to $2tn is moved illegally each year. Criminals use big banks to hide money, which is often linked to organised crime, with funds being used to pay for assets to hide the money's origin. In the UK, the National Crime Agency (NCA) estimates that money laundering costs the country's economy £24bn each year.