Know Your Customer is becoming increasingly difficult as companies have to keep track of:

• the daily regulatory document changes, announcements and enforcements (There are now 130+ changes each business day in the Governance, Risk and Compliance arena.)
• the changers and additions to the Politically Exposed People (PEP) and organisations world-wide.

A single AML slip-up can involve the corporate treasury department in months and sometimes years on a blacklist which can severely restrict business. Yet taking on a new customer can involve a huge amount of time researching their background and reputation, etc.

No wonder that corporates are increasingly using the managed KYC services to avoid becoming involved in Anti-Money Laundering prosecutions and lawsuits. 

Investment firms sign up

It is not just corporates who are using the Managed KYC services as two recent announcements by Thomson Reuters show:

• Stifel Nicolaus Europe, a premier investment management firm, has chosen Thomson Reuters Org ID KYC Managed Service to streamline Stifel’s Know Your Customer (KYC) process
• BlackRock, a leader in investment management, risk management and advisory services for institutional and retail clients worldwide, has selected Thomson Reuters Org ID (Org ID) to complement its existing counterparty due diligence process.

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CTMfile take: These announcements show that even the biggest, most efficient organisations find it difficult to provide a full KYC service internally. As the almost inevitable growth in number / range of regulations, and PEPs continues, more organisations will find they have to use the leading KYC Managed Services.