Financial crime prevention is meaningful work. You’re protecting real people from real…
In the fight against financial crime, AML compliance is at the centre of every financial institution’s risk management strategy.
With evolving regulations, increasingly creative and sophisticated criminals and the sheer volume of transactions to be monitored, it’s easy for Financial Crime teams to become overwhelmed.
Regulators globally are encouraging firms to adopt new and innovative technology to bridge the gap, and AI is proving to be a key player for the next generation of financial crime fighters.
But technology alone isn’t enough. The most effective AML programmes combine tech with human expertise to bring together the speed and scalability of machines with the judgement and empathy of people.
Additionally, regulators demand best-in-class compliance that includes explainability and evidence of sound decision-making.
What AI brings to financial crime prevention
AI technologies such as machine learning, anomaly detection and natural language processing bring powerful new capabilities to AML compliance, including:
- Reduced false positives – AI models can learn from historical outcomes, filtering out non-criminal activity and focusing on the truly suspicious behaviour;
- Real-time monitoring – using AI, systems can analyse huge volumes of transactions and activity instantly, giving faster insights and allowing quicker actions to mitigate risk; and
- Behavioural insights – AI detects unusual patterns relative to customer profiles, identifying those true edge cases.
Why people remain essential
Despite all AI’s strengths, people still play a vital part in fighting financial crime and compliance. Human expertise is vital for:
- Contextual judgement – analysts bring cultural, geographical, geopolitical and market knowledge that can’t be replicated by algorithms;
- Explaining decisions – humans interpret AI output and ensure they align with compliance obligations;
- Ethical oversight – AI needs monitoring to prevent bias and maintain trust; and
- Accountability – at the end of the day, compliance responsibility lies with people.
After all, the whole point of AML compliance isn’t just compliance with rules and regulations. It’s about people. Financial crime fuels everything from terrorism to human trafficking, and compliance is way more than ticking a box.
AI isn’t about automating financial crime teams; it’s about freeing them from repetitive tasks so they can focus on the highest-risk scenarios and protecting their customers.
The future of AML compliance
The people-technology partnership creates compliance frameworks that balance innovation with accountability, automation with oversight and speed with transparency.
AI will not replace financial crime professionals, but those who embrace innovation will outpace those who don’t.
This isn’t about choosing between people and AI. It’s about combining both to stay a step ahead of criminals and protect the integrity of the financial system.
Building the partnership
At ThirdEye, we’ve always believed effective financial crime prevention comes from empowering professionals, not replacing them.
Built through close partnership with financial crime teams, our platform delivers the control and flexibility you need: customisable rules engines you can update instantly, comprehensive customer screening against global watchlists, sandbox testing to refine detection before going live, real-time transaction monitoring, unified case management from alert through to reporting, and direct regulatory reporting to AUSTRAC and the NZ FIU.
Our approach to AI development centres on this principle: transparency, explainability, and keeping financial crime professionals in control of every decision. We’re building capabilities that enhance your expertise rather than replace it, so you can act with both speed and confidence.
