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Industry signals from APAC, EMEA & North America – Plus what’s new at SymphonyAI
Financial crime compliance is accelerating globally. Regulators are tightening expectations, enforcement actions are becoming more pointed, and institutions are being pushed to demonstrate not just compliance but effectiveness as well.
In this inaugural edition of Risk Radar, we’ve gathered insights from SymphonyAI SMEs across APAC, EMEA, and North America, alongside recent and upcoming industry engagements shaping the global conversation.
Here’s what matters right now.
North America
North America has seen some of the most consequential developments in recent months, both in regulatory timelines and in enforcement posture.
US
FinCEN delays Investment Adviser AML rule
In January, FinCEN officially delayed the AML/CFT program and SAR requirements for registered and exempt investment advisers from 2026 to January 1, 2028.
Even so, the rule is coming and expectations are set, so organizations should use this time to modernize infrastructure rather than postpone preparation.
For investment advisers entering formal AML program obligations for the first time, this is a structural shift and not just a compliance update.
Section 311 “Primary money laundering concern” designation
In February, the U.S. Treasury designated Switzerland-based MBaer Merchant Bank AG as a “primary money laundering concern” under Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act.
This is significant.
Section 311 is often described as a regulatory “death penalty,” effectively cutting off the institution from access to the U.S. financial system by prohibiting correspondent banking relationships.
Historically, this action has been used primarily against institutions in fringe jurisdictions, but with the bank being based in Switzerland, this case is clearly different.
The signal to global financial institutions is that geography is no longer an insulation and that financial centers are not immune from designation.
The action — tied in part to sanctions evasion involving Iran, Russia, and Venezuela — reinforces heightened scrutiny around cross-border sanctions exposure and correspondent banking relationships.
Canada
Global Affairs Canada has refreshed its sanctions guidance, expanding FAQs and sector-specific modules for financial services, real estate, humanitarian, and academic sectors.
Key focus areas include:
- Broader interpretations of indirect or deemed ownership
- Heightened due diligence expectations
- FINTRAC reporting obligations tied to sanctions evasion
This aligns with a broader global tightening around beneficial ownership transparency and sanctions enforcement.
EMEA
There’s a lot of news from AMLA this month, with a few other important updates from the UK and UAE.
UK Regulator AI Sandbox
SymphonyAI was accepted into the inaugural cohort of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Supercharged AI Sandbox. to incubate a new agentic AI idea and present the results at a 2-day showcase at the FCA’s London office. During the 12-week program, we developed and tested a Small Language Model (SLM)-based agent to complement our existing Transaction Intelligence Agent. We successfully demonstrated our objectives, evidencing
- 90-100% performance parity against benchmark tasks
- The ability for SLMs to handle approximately 5–10 subtasks without significant performance degradation; and
- That domain-trained SLMs can outperform untuned general-purpose LLMs on specific investigative tasks.
SymphonyAI is pleased to have participated in this regulatory-backed initiative – to push boundaries, gather immediate feedback, and develop AI modes in a safe environment that shapes the next generation of agentic AI for financial services.
EU AMLA Updates:
AMLA Takes the reins from the EBA
At the end of January 2026, the EU Anti-Money Laundering Authority (EU AMLA) took over key AML/CFT rule-setting responsibilities from the European Banking Authority, signaling a shift toward more centralised EU supervision and standardised compliance expectations across member states.
Second consultation on the CDD RTS
AMLA has launched a second consultation on the draft CDD Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) under Article 28(1), refining expectations for customer identification, beneficial ownership verification and risk-based due diligence — giving firms a clearer view of the future EU CDD baseline. This follows the EBA’s consultation that concluded in October 2025, with the aim of providing improved details for FIs, non-FIs and the data requirements.
Consultation on business relationships and linked transactions
AMLA also opened consultation on RTS under Article 19(9) covering how firms identify business relationships and linked transactions. The proposals aim to harmonize how related transactions are detected and treated for monitoring and AML risk assessment.
UAE AML framework developments in 2026
Authorities including the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates continue to strengthen the UAE’s AML/CFT regime, with increasing supervisory expectations around beneficial ownership transparency, sanctions compliance and suspicious activity reporting. The use of tech, analytics, and AI is now expected, rather than optional.
EU Strengthens counter-terrorism Sanctions regime
The European Union has strengthened its counter-terrorism sanctions framework, expanding listing mechanisms and enforcement tools to better disrupt terrorist financing networks.
UK expands regulation of cryptoassets from 2027
The UK will bring broader cryptoasset activities into the regulatory perimeter under the Financial Services and Markets Act from October 2027, with the Financial Conduct Authority overseeing conduct, consumer protection and prudential requirements.
APAC
Across APAC, the direction of travel is clear: speed, accountability, and measurable outcomes.
Singapore
The Monetary Authority of Singapore has issued updated guidance for insurers, which strengthens expectations around:
- Inclusion of proliferation financing risk in assessments
- Shorter suspicious transaction reporting (STR) timelines
- Higher CDD standards
MAS continues to emphasize proactive risk identification and dynamic compliance frameworks.
Malaysia
Banka Negara Malaysia has issued multiple fines on institutions for failure to promptly report suspicious transaction reports (STRs) and for weaknesses in enhanced due diligence.
Australia
AUSTRAC remains highly active with their AML/CTF reform:
- AML program “starter kits” issued ahead of July 2026 regulatory expansion
- Multi-bank collaboration to identify buyers of Australian-produced child sexual exploitation materials
- Targeted intelligence focuses on the illicit tobacco trade
- Enforcement proceedings involving payments firm AirWallex and Bendigo Bank
Across Australia and New Zealand, regulator–industry collaboration is intensifying. There appears to be a huge effort on intelligence sharing and cross-sector coordination.
Global
A key recent development, with a global outlook, was the FATF Learning and Development Forum, which took place in London last week, bringing together over 100 representatives from financial supervisors, FIUs, law enforcement agencies, policymakers, and major international banks.
The core focus was on strengthening implementation of the risk-based approach.
For years, institutions have built risk-based frameworks. Now, supervisors are shifting from asking whether firms have a framework to instead asking:
- How effectively is it implemented?
- How dynamic is it?
- How quickly can it adapt to new typologies?
- How do you evidence its outcomes?
This moves the conversation from policy documentation to operational proof and, increasingly, to technology enablement.
It’s evident that across APAC, EMEA, and North America, four consistent themes are emerging – sanctions enforcement is escalating, regulators want evidence of effectiveness (and not just documentation), collaboration across the industry is increasing, and AI-driven systems are highlighting what is possible, with expectations rising accordingly.
SymphonyAI Engagements
To close out this edition of Risk Radar, SymphonyAI has been involved in several recent events and engagements, which we thought we would update you on here, alongside future opportunities for you to meet us in person.
Past events
December 2025
Sydney & Melbourne Customer Forums
SymphonyAI hosted customer forums in Australia with our President, John Edison, and Head of Strategy & Innovation, Jason Shane.
Discussions focused on the evolution of Sensa Risk Intelligence, a preview of upcoming products, transaction monitoring coverage, workflow automation, and unified data strategies.
Customers conversations closely aligned with global supervisory trends toward demonstrable effectiveness and operational agility.
January 2026
Kuala Lumpur
Our AGC Regional Compliance Officer, Magdalene Wong, participated in the Asia Institute of Chartered Bankers (AICB) roundtable, sharing insights on AI-led risk management.
We also delivered a training workshop for over 100 AICB participants on practical AI adoption pathways, governance considerations, and responsible implementation in financial crime operations
March 2026
Regulation Asia Fraud & Financial Crime Event (Sydney)
SymphonyAI was the major sponsor of the inaugural Regulation Asia Fraud and Financial Crime event.
Representatives of SymphonyAI delivered a keynote address and joined a panel alongside NAB, Morgan Stanley, Norton Rose Fulbright, and Canada’s RCMP Cyber Liaison Officer, which focuses on cross-border fraud, financial, and cybercrime risks in the digital age.
Given the recent Section 311 action in the U.S. and heightened sanctions scrutiny globally, this conversation could not have been more timely.
Looking ahead
March 2026
Transform Finance 6th Annual FinCrime Leaders Summit UK – 10th March
Meet SymphonyAI in London on 10th March to explore our AI-powered platform built to help financial institutions modernize financial crime operations with stronger controls, smarter workflows, and measurable efficiency gains.
We will be presenting Converging Intelligence: Agentic AI, Data and Financial Crime Control on the Main Stage and also running an interactive roundtable discussion on agentic AI and compliance. We hope to see you there.
1LOD Financial Crime Summit – 11th March
Join us in New York for the 1LOD Financial Crime Summit. Visit our booth to see how Agentic AI helps risk and compliance teams modernize controls, reduce manual effort, and maintain confidence in a constantly changing environment.
Just like in London, we will be involved in an opening panel discussion – Adapting to an Evolving Risk Landscape in Financial Crime Compliance – and hosting an interactive roundtable about agentic AI’s role in Always-on Compliance.
Online Webinar w/ Microsoft and EY – 11th March
Also on the 11th March, SymphonyAI is hosting an online webinar with representatives from EY and Microsoft. Titled Modernizing Compliance Without Disrupting the Business – the “Always-On Compliance” Approach, guests will talk about how moving towards an AI native and always-on compliance approach enables institutions to modernize safely, introducing continuous oversight and intelligence in a controlled, pragmatic way that protects business operations. Register today.
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That’s it from this issue of Risk Radar. If you’d like to discuss any of the themes covered here from risk-based supervision to AI-led compliance transformation, simply get in touch and we’d be happy to continue the conversation.
Recent resources
Why the Know Your Customer (KYC) Market Is Shifting to Continuous Risk Monitoring
Celent Vendor Profile – SymphonyAI KYC
Case study: Spanish bank hugely reduces screening false positives
Whitepaper: The New Financial Crime Ecosystem
Going beyond continuous compliance with Always-on Compliance
Learn more about Sensa Risk Intelligence
Contact us to find out more about Sensa Risk Intelligence and Always-on Compliance and to receive a personalized demo.