Machine Learning in Anti-Money Laundering

The IIF surveyed 59 institutions (54 banks and 5 insurers) on their exploration and adoption of Machine Learning techniques in Anti-Money Laundering. While the detailed version of our resultant report is limited in its distribution to the regulatory community and those 59 firms, a short-form summary report has also been prepared for public distribution. This study covers the particular purposes of application in the AML space, as well as which types of specific techniques are in scope, firms' maturity in adopting, benefits, challenges and model governance. Our findings indicated that the application of machine learning techniques in AML is spreading quickly across the industry, driven by a dedication to build a stronger and more effective defense system against illicit activity. Significantly, none of the 59 surveyed firms were pursuing machine learning as a means to reduce staff, but rather to gain greater and faster insights that can be made available for their trained AML analysts.