EMTECH: Managing Risk and Implementing Compliance Processes

One of the most pressing challenges facing fintechs and impacting central banks is how to ensure regulatory compliance. As the incidences of fraud, digital identity theft and money laundering increase, a recent McKinsey & Company report, The Future of the Payments Industry: How Managing Risk Can Drive Growth, notes that service providers should “modify their risk management programs to protect their revenue and improve regulatory compliance. This may include enhancements to issue management, due diligence processes, risk appetite setting, or risk identification processes.”

But how are service providers and fintechs going to ensure their compliance processes are up to speed without labor-intensive manual processes including regulatory research and reviews? The costs of non-compliance can result in hefty fines or even the loss of a fintech’s license. If fintech is to grow more resilient and effective at protecting consumers today and in the future, we have to rethink how compliance will be managed compared to how it's done today. With highly fragmented regulatory requirements, risk monitoring and reporting methods, a more integrated compliance management platform is an essential tool for survival and growth. This is why EMTECH has introduced the Beyond Compliance product.

Beyond Compliance is designed to help financial service providers (FSPs) automate and manage regulatory compliance from one single source of truth. Regulatory compliance is an imperative for FSPs as the fines for non-compliance can run into the billions of dollars.

Simplifying and Automating Compliance Processes

Beyond Compliance helps users stay ahead of regulatory issues before they result in fines, loss of a license, bankruptcy or closures.

Using Beyond Compliance offers the following features:

• Streamlined licensing application process

• Multi-Country Regulatory Framework Configuration

• Multi-License Requirements Tracker (Payments Service Providers)

• AML + KYC Data Integration

• Automated workflows and Task Manager for collaborative evidence gathering

• Compliance Gap Assessment Dashboard

• Collaboration with external legal and compliance partners

• Seamless regulatory reporting

Market Response to Beyond Compliance

Early response to automating compliance using EMTECH’s SaaS solution has been enthusiastic. The Beyond Compliance product provides “a great user experience, it is a customizable solution. The product is detailed and very effective in ensuring compliance to regulatory directives,” says beta user Kwasi Ofei, Head of Compliance at Juni Payments.

“Regulatory compliance can be a complex task for FSPs. EMTECH's Beyond Compliance is designed to help fintechs manage their compliance requirements, in one or more markets, monitor their compliance status and provide a level of regulatory visibility that is required by Central Bankers and regulators,” says Steven Dickens, Chief Technology Advisor at The Futurum Group.

As staying in compliance becomes more and more labor intensive, it makes sense for FSPs, central banks and fintechs to invest in compliance tools now rather than in the future.

About the Author

Carmelle Cadet, founder & CEO of EMTECH, is a seasoned software executive whose career includes ground-breaking work at IBM as a Blockchain executive. She is a pioneer in the area of digital currency and worked on the first CBDC to be deployed in the world in The Bahamas. At EMTECH, her practical experience includes work on CBDC projects (pilots) with the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Bank of Ghana, the Central Bank of The Bahamas and the US Federal Reserve System.

About EMTECH

EMTECH is a modern central bank technology and services company offering an integrated SaaS platform with products such as the Digital Regulatory Sandbox and Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). EMTECH’s innovative solutions empower central banks, financial institutions and regulators to navigate the rapidly evolving landscape of financial services innovation and regulation. EMTECH enables its partners to address local and regional challenges, foster financial inclusion and drive sustainable economic growth by providing cutting-edge technology solutions and services.

On 10 September 2024, Accenture announced that it has invested in EMTECH through Accenture Ventures. The investment will support EMTECH in its efforts to transform central banks’ financial and technology infrastructure and make it easier for central banks to regulate and supervise fintechs in an increasingly digital economy. Accenture will integrate EMTECH products for digital cash, regulatory sandboxes, and compliance into the company’s core banking transformation services.

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