Resources and insights
Explore industry news, expert interviews, innovative technologies, and resources shaping the future of compliance and digital onboarding.
What should trigger a fresh look at an approved investor?
When approved investors change: triggering fresh KYC reviews without waiting for scheduled updates. Detect ownership shifts, funding changes and screening alerts.
What actually closes an AML remediation finding?
AML remediation findings require proof the underlying control works, not just task completion. Learn what regulators expect from effective remediation.
Source of wealth and source of funds in investor onboarding
Distinguish source of wealth from source of funds in investor onboarding. Learn why identifying money origins matters for effective KYC compliance.
How sanctions evasion hides behind ordinary companies
Legitimate companies can mask sanctions evasion through shell networks and false invoices. Learn how to detect hidden payment purposes during investor onboarding.
How to verify beneficial ownership across borders
Verify beneficial ownership across borders with fragmented records. Learn how to piece together ownership and control when documents span multiple jurisdictions and trust structures.
Toys, collectibles and money laundering: following the funds
How toys and collectibles intersect with money laundering, and why an auction receipt alone may not explain an investor's source of funds
How on-chain AML analysis differs from conventional checks
Understand how on-chain AML analysis traces crypto transactions, where attribution can fail, and why identity and source-of-funds checks still matter.
Plug Capital brings Steward in to be its chosen partner for AML/KYC across its VC fund umbrella
Plug Capital partners with Steward for AML/KYC compliance across its VC fund umbrella, streamlining investor onboarding for emerging managers.
What is the FATF grey list, and why are countries on it?
Why countries enter the FATF grey list, how they leave, and what Monaco and Bulgaria's progress means for country risk and due diligence.
DORA compliance: what financial firms must be able to show
Understand DORA scope, ICT supplier risk, incident reporting and testing, with practical implications for fund managers and compliance teams
99% False Positives is effectively a compliance tax
Sanctions screening false positive rates of 95–99% are treated as normal. Why legacy name matching drowns compliance teams, and how AI-driven contextual screening fixes it
The Best PEP and Sanctions Screening Vendors in 2026
Compare PEP and sanctions screening vendors: which sell data, which sell platforms, and how to run a screening proof of concept
Sanctions Screening Before a Fund Distribution
A UK fund distribution is due and an investor is flagged. Follow the decisions on identity, ownership, payment controls, escalation and evidence.
Former PEP Due Diligence: Reassessing the Investor
How UK investment firms can reassess former PEPs, document continuing risk and update investor controls after a public role ends
Enhanced Due Diligence: What Makes It Enhanced?
Follow a fund investor's enhanced due diligence assessment from risk factors to targeted enquiries, supporting evidence and a documented decision.
KYC Periodic Review Checklist: When Is It Complete?
Define what closes a KYC periodic review, how to handle unresolved exceptions, and what evidence should support the final decision.
AMLR Customer Due Diligence: The Investor File
Assess an investor file for AMLR readiness: map identity, ownership and verification evidence, separate draft standards, and prioritise gaps.
Periodic Review Is Dead. It Just Doesn't Know It Yet.
Periodic review cycles guarantee outdated files. Discover why static KYC monitoring fails and how continuous risk assessment replaces broken compliance controls.
PEP checks: why a high-risk label is not enough
PEP checks: why a high-risk label is not enough. Learn what static labels miss and how proper evidence, approval decisions, and monitoring prevent compliance failures.
Source of Wealth vs Source of Funds: For Private Banks
Distinguish source of funds from source of wealth in private banking. Learn why this critical gap is where money laundering thrives and how to properly document both.
153 Million Licence Scans Later, the Document Is Not the Evidence
A dark web index held 153m licence scans, infrared and ultraviolet layers included. Why identity documents stopped being proof, and what replaces them.
UK ACSP Authorisation and the Fit-and-Proper Test
UK ACSP authorisation requires demonstrating fit-and-proper standards for identity verification and company filings. Learn regulatory compliance requirements for Companies House agents.
A Complete Subscription Pack Is Not a Complete CDD File
How funds can build an AMLR-ready CDD file for entity investors, from subscription through ongoing monitoring.
AMLR Ownership Intelligence for Funds
How AMLR Article 61 changes beneficial ownership analysis for funds, AIFMs, ManCos and complex investment structures
Why Ownership Reporting Matters in Complex Structures
Comprehensive ownership reporting reveals who benefits, controls and acts for entities. Learn why UBO documentation is essential for defensible AML/KYC decisions.
FinCEN Ends BOI Reporting for U.S. Companies
FinChen ends BOI reporting for U.S. companies, but beneficial ownership due diligence remains critical for compliance and risk management.
The AML AI Readiness Gap in North America
North American firms allocate funds to AI for AML, yet 54% use 8-10 fragmented systems. Why AI adoption isn't the same as operational readiness.
AML Red Flags for Payroll and Annex 1 Firm
Identify AML red flags in payroll and Annex 1 firms: understand sector-specific risks, connect anomalies to customer context, and build effective controls.
How to Set Up AML Controls for a UK Business
A practical operating model for building AML controls that work across payroll and Annex 1 businesses
FCA Increases Scrutiny of Annex 1 Firms
What the FCA's August 2026 intervention means for Annex 1 registration, governance and AML controls
What Event-Driven KYC Actually Looks Like
Material changes don't wait for review cycles. Learn how event-driven KYC keeps compliance files current by monitoring actual risk signals, not calendar dates.
UBS's $125m AML Penalty: The Cost of Failed Remediation
FinCEN's UBS action shows why AML remediation fails when data lineage, monitoring controls and ongoing customer risk remain disconnected.
Beneficial Ownership Is Not the Same as Control
Beneficial ownership and control aren't the same. Discover why KYC processes must distinguish between economic interest and decision-making authority in investment structures.
How AI Changes KYC Profile Migration
Learn how AI can classify documents, reconstruct profiles and expose KYC migration gaps while preserving evidence, policy and human oversight
How to Adopt AI in AML and KYC Successfully
Move AML and KYC operations from AI pilot to production with clear use cases, controls, testing, phased rollout and human oversight.
No Client KYC Data in Unapproved AI Tool
Keep client KYC data out of unapproved ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Mistral and other AI tools. Learn what an approved service must provide
Finding the Human: Beneficial Ownership in Layered Fund Structures
UBO verification in layered fund structures is where AML programs fail. How to identify and verify beneficial owners through holding chains, trusts and nominees - properly
KYC Platform Migration: A Practical Best-Practice Guide
Plan a safer KYC platform migration with evidence preservation, data mapping, gap analysis, risk-based waves and clear acceptance controls.
A Practical Guide to Agentic AI in KYC and AML
Learn how agentic AI works across KYC and AML, from document review and ownership mapping to screening analysis and ongoing monitoring.
UK Payroll Providers: HMRC Registration Is Only the Start
UK payroll providers face AML supervision requirements before HMRC registration deadline. Discover what control frameworks are needed now.
The Commercial Cost of Bad KYC
Investor onboarding delays cost funds real money - stalled subscriptions, frustrated LPs, lost allocations. Why KYC speed is a commercial weapon, not a compliance detail.
How to Use AI Safely With KYC and AML Data
A practical guide to using AI chatbots and vendors with KYC and AML data while controlling access, training, retention, transfers and audit.
Build vs Buy KYC Software: What Should Your Firm Actually Own?
Compare building and buying KYC software across control, cost, data, integration and accountability before choosing your architecture
KYC Data Management: Why AI Depends on Getting Data in the Right Place
Learn how to organise KYC data for AI using connected entity records, evidence provenance, permissions, freshness and audit-ready history.
KYC Remediation After an Acquisition
A practical playbook for assessing inherited KYC files, prioritising gaps and moving an acquired client book onto one defensible AML standard
The AML Audit Finds the Problem After It Has Already Happened
A customer's AML risk score starts ageing the moment onboarding ends. Why static ratings create false precision—and what dynamic risk looks like.
Ongoing Monitoring: Why Perpetual KYC Beats the Remediation Cycle
Ongoing KYC monitoring vs. one-time checks: why continuous oversight prevents costly compliance gaps and regulatory penalties.
Sanctions Lists: What They Are, Who Updates Them and How to Choose the Right Ones
What sanctions lists are, who updates the OFAC, UN, EU and UK lists, and how to choose the right coverage for AML/KYC screening
Types of PEP: Domestic vs Foreign, and How to Dismiss a Match Properly
Understand PEP classifications and risk levels: foreign, domestic, family members, and associates. Learn proper dismissal procedures to reduce false positives while staying compliant.
Why Static KYC Folders Fail
Static KYC folders go stale the moment you share them. Here is why KYC document management for reverse KYC requires a live profile, not a copy.
Claude for Financial Services
What Anthropic's Claude for Financial Services KYC Screener actually does, what it's missing, and how compliance teams use it.
Source of Wealth vs Source of Funds: What's the Difference?
Source of wealth and source of funds are different KYC checks. Learn what evidence regulators expect at each risk tier, and how to gather it without delay
AI Agents Remediate KYC in < 5 mins
What Is Adverse Media Screening? A Practical Guide for AML Teams
What is adverse media screening, and why is it AML's hardest discipline? How to scope it, assess a hit, and monitor negative news without drowning.
The Forged Bank Statement Problem
AI can now generate flawless fake bank statements, utility bills and corporate documents. How funds, banks and fund admins should detect fraudulent documents in KYC files
FATCA and CRS Reporting
Master FATCA and CRS reporting: understand continuous tax compliance obligations, avoid costly errors, and streamline fund investor data handoffs.
Deepfakes Have Arrived at Investor Onboarding. Your Checks Haven't Noticed
Deepfake KYC fraud is surging - face swaps and camera injection now beat standard biometric onboarding. What funds, banks and wealth managers must change about identity verification.
AI KYC Remediation: How AI Agents Clear a Backlog, Task by Task
See how AI KYC remediation works task by task: alert adjudication, entity resolution, and perpetual KYC that stops backlogs reforming
What Europe's New AML Regime (AMLA) Means for Funds
The EU's AMLR applies from 10 July 2027 and AMLA is already writing the rulebook. What the new EU AML regime means for funds, fund admins and private banks - and why waiting is a mistake
How to Reduce False Positives in AML Screening
Cut sanctions and PEP false positives in AML screening: why they happen, how to tune matching, and how to keep every dismissal auditable and defensible.
The FinCEN Investment Adviser Rule Moved to 2028. Don't Celebrate.
FinCEN delayed the investment adviser AML rule to January 1, 2028 - but the scope remains intact. Why RIAs and exempt reporting advisers should use the delay, not waste it
KYC Periodic Review Process: A Practical Guide for Funds
How to build a KYC periodic review process: risk-based cycles, trigger events, dormant investors and document expiry monitoring, explained
KYB vs KYC: Why Verifying a Company Is Nothing Like Verifying a Person
KYB vs KYC explained for funds, fund admins and banks: how business verification differs from individual KYC, why entity structures break standard tools, and how to do KYB properly
KYC Remediation: The Project Nobody Budgets For Until The Regulator Calls
Let’s talk about why remediation keeps failing and what a sane version looks like.
KYC Remediation: Why Compliance Debt Always Comes With Interest
KYC remediation is compliance debt repaid with interest. The Starling Bank £29m fine shows the true cost, and how AI stops it recurring
How to Respond to a Reverse KYC Request
A practical guide to responding to a KYC or AML information request: triage scope, assemble documents, verify currency, and deliver securely.
The Live AML Passport: A Better Way to Manage Reverse KYC
Reverse KYC costs asset managers time, delays, and risk. Learn how a live, reusable AML passport changes the operating model for fund compliance teams.
Steward hires Chief Growth Officer, opens doors in Luxembourg 🇱🇺
One small step for AML, one giant leap for Luxembourg
Steward, an AI-first compliance platform trusted with $100B in investor assets - raises $5M.
Steward raises $5M led by Motive Ventures and Outward VC to transform complex investor onboarding with an AI-first AML platform.
Professional Services Firms are in for an AML shock
The UK's FCA is expected to take over the reigns on AML matters and they mean business
Italian authorities uncover Hamas-linked Charity
See our guide to onboarding Charities safely
Steward | Your partner in crime
The ultimate weapon against dirty money: Tourism boost?
The FCA’s New AML Questionnaire for Asset Managers
Why Your Risk Framework May Not Survive Christmas
Vega partners with Steward
Bringing AI-first AML experiences to client infrastructure
Steward | Your partner in crime
Steward's revolutionary date validator transforms compliance checks, eliminating document rejection delays and streamlining onboarding with smart, efficient verification technology.
Steward are sponsoring SuperReturn CFO/COO 2025
29 September - 1 October 2025 (Amsterdam NL)
Why is AML Compliance Broken 💔
"Don't worry, their Compliance stack looks like it was built in C++"
Know Your Investor (KYI)
The ultimate AML challenge