Anti-Money Laundering (AML) includes policies, laws, and regulations to prevent criminals' financial crimes and illegal activity. Global and local regulators are established worldwide to prevent financial crimes and criminal activities, and these regulators build policies. Companies must comply with these regulations.

AML screening can be of different types and you can use separate types of databases and processes to do so. Based on your organization’s business and global policy requirements. 

1.Sanctions screening 

Every country or union of countries (e.g. European Union), publishes a list of sanctioned and restricted individuals (primarily wanted criminals, tax evaders and terrorists) and entities. FIs are required to check their customer data against these lists to ensure that they do not conduct any business with such individuals or entities. Some of the databases that are used - WorldCheck, World Compliance, Factiva etc.

2.Media Screening 

In simple words, this is google search. Customer information is entered to public search engines or paid databases (e.g. Factiva, World Compliance) to gather information on the customer. The ultimate objective is to find if the customer has any history or allegation of financial crime.

3.PEP Screening 

PEP stands for Political Exposed Persons. PEPs can be two types: Self or Related. PEPs are considered as high risk individuals and a financial institution is required to identify them and perform appropriate level of due diligence.

4.Internal Screening 

Every FI keeps an internal record of individuals or entities those have been identified as blocked. Sometimes, FIs share this list with other companies. This list primarily includes defaulters, fraudsters, scammers etc.

1.It boost Financial Security

 AML is essential to protect the stability of financial systems. Such measures help identify and prevent financial crimes, such as money laundering, that undermine the security and trust of banks and financial firms.

2.It builds Trust and Positive Reputation

Financial firms and businesses implementing robust AML programmes show commitment to ethical and lawful practices. This builds their positive image, and fosters trust among clients, stakeholders, and investors.

3.It maintains Regulatory Compliance

 Financial firms are mandated to abide by AML regulations. Non-compliance can lead to heavy financial penalties, legal repercussions, and reputational damage