6 challenges to balancing AML compliance and smooth onboarding

In the current financial and regulatory landscape, institutions face mounting pressure to navigate complex compliance demands while simultaneously delivering seamless digital experiences to customers. The tension between robust anti-money laundering (AML) controls and user-friendly onboarding isn't theoretical: the consequences are real, and the costs are high. According to Signicat, 68% of consumers in Europe have already abandoned financial service applications at some point due to onboarding difficulties. The reasons for abandonment are manifold, and companies in the industry must work on these pressing challenges to combine compliance and user-friendliness in digital onboarding:

1. Regulatory complexity and variation

Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations are highly fragmented across jurisdictions, reflecting differing priorities, legal traditions, and enforcement mechanisms. For example, global institutions must reconcile the requirements of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations, the EU's evolving AML directives, and the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act. These obligations often overlap but can also conflict, creating operational uncertainty and legal risk. Compounding the challenge, regulators continuously update their expectations, requiring institutions to monitor and adapt processes in near real-time.

2. High transaction volumes

Large banks process millions of financial transactions every day, making it extremely difficult to identify illicit activity hidden among legitimate flows. Detecting suspicious patterns is like finding a needle in a haystack, as money launderers intentionally blend illegal funds into complex networks of legitimate transactions.

3. Data quality and integration

Effective AML monitoring depends on high-quality, holistic customer and transaction data. However, this information is often fragmented across legacy IT systems, separate business lines, or even different jurisdictions, leading to data silos and inconsistencies. Poor data quality, such as incomplete Know Your Customer (KYC) records, outdated customer details, or missing transaction attributes, directly undermines risk assessments and detection capabilities.

4. Inconsistent knowledge across departments

Financial institutions also face internal alignment challenges. Different teams, particularly frontline sales staff versus compliance professionals, may have inconsistent levels of knowledge about regulatory requirements, digital processes, or the use of different electronic signature levels. This knowledge gap can create operational inefficiencies, misunderstandings with clients, and increased compliance risk. Standardized training and clearer cross-departmental communication are essential to ensure all employees share a consistent understanding of both technical and regulatory requirements.

5. Electronic signature verification

As digital onboarding and remote transactions become standard, verifying electronic signatures has emerged as a significant operational challenge. Qualified electronic signatures are often issued by multiple providers, each with unique technical specifications and security standards. Financial institutions must ensure that these signatures are reliably authenticated, legally valid, and seamlessly integrated into digital workflows—without adding friction for customers. Failure to do so can undermine both compliance and customer trust.

6. Customer-friendly digital journeys

Delivering a compliant yet seamless customer onboarding experience is a delicate balance. Customers expect fast, intuitive, and mobile-friendly processes that guide them through identification and verification steps without annoying and time-consuming media disruptions. At the same time, financial institutions must accommodate diverse user environments, ranging from different devices and operating systems to varying levels of digital literacy.

A trusted platform is the answer

To meet the requirements of anti-money laundering legislation and the demand for a user-friendly KYC process, companies in the financial sector need a centralized platform that can handle large amounts of data, adapt to various national and international regulations, and integrate effective security mechanisms.

At the same time, all processes should be easy to use for both customers and employees. Ideally, providers offer such solutions as white label variants so that they can be seamlessly integrated into the corporate design of a bank or other financial service provider. This creates additional trust and a more pleasant experience for customers.

Would you like to learn more about digital trust ecosystems within the financial sector? Download our latest white paper, which we created in collaboration with mesoneer, a Swisscom partner and platform provider for finance companies.

Do you have any questions? Contact us!

Customer success stories

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6 challenges to balancing AML compliance and smooth onboarding

1. Regulatory complexity and variation

2. High transaction volumes

3. Data quality and integration

4. Inconsistent knowledge across departments

5. Electronic signature verification

6. Customer-friendly digital journeys

A trusted platform is the answer

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