SIORK: A Proven Approach to AI-Based Anti-Money Laundering

To rephrase an iconic dialogue, “with great power comes a test of strength.” This statement demonstrates the present-day financial technology scene to a tee. Where there is no limit to the size of the victim or the attack, security is only as strong as the weakest link. In a market that grows by leaps and bounds every day, it is the rise of advanced and customer-friendly technology that has left doors open for fraud and newer methods of money laundering. “The first step to nipping money laundering at the bud is to understand and screen internal and external stakeholders—employees and customers,” explains Kumiko Takeshita, co-founder and COO at SIORK, a technology company that empowers its clients to fight the battle against money laundering, terrorist financing, and financial fraud.

SIORK’s SaaS-based anti-money laundering (AML) solution revolves around keeping the “bad guys” at bay and safeguarding its financial clients. According to Kumiko, the AML cycle begins with onboarding the customer and using KYC to perform risk rating by screening them against public and internal customer lists. Alongside KYC, SIORK blends customer due diligence (CDD) to ensure periodic reviewing of the database, comprising not only basic information but also the records of every transaction ever made. These documents form the basis for transaction monitoring, which SIORK combines with an intuitive user interface to allow the institution to supervise the transaction workflow.

For financial institutions, SIORK’s holistic and comprehensive SaaS AML solution saves the trouble of installing multiple applications.

To leave no stone unturned SIORK incorporates AI and machine learning algorithms that screen for fraudsters and threats in cryptocurrency, blockchain, and other cashless transaction systems. In an attempt to reach out to the international market, the team localizes its product—by encompassing support for both Latin-and non-Latin-based languages— making it relevant to the users’ local setup. By using NLP-based “negative news tracking” and ideographical matching, SIORK makes sure organizations are appraised of an individual or the organizations they engage with, and lets them check if they have a record in any international watchlist.

To thrive in a scenario that is constantly evolving, it is essential to stay abreast of the advancements, and Kumiko ensures this by keeping her ear to the ground when it comes to new-age regulatory trends and insights. Complementing her is team SIORK that maintains a strong relationship with customers, and receives firsthand information, suggestions, and feedback from them. “The idea is to be closer to our clientele, which makes it easier to resolve grievances and provide the best outcomes to the end users,” says Kumiko.

Team SIORK’s ability to be on a par with the fast-advancing technology and demands of the market has increased the customer traction, as was the case when they collaborated with one of Japan’s most prominent financial groups. The bank faced the challenge of maintaining several KYC solutions that did not function cohesively. After seeking SIORK’s expertise, the client began using their SaaS AML solution, which enabled the integration of the entire KYC process on a single platform, in addition to adding public and internal screening, workflow management and “negative news reviewing” capabilities.

SIORK holds several such success stories up its sleeves, and the road does not end there. With the aim of reaching out to more customers, the organization is extending the foreign language availability, making it a truly global platform. They are all set to unveil the product as a plug-in solution, to simplify its deployment and usage. After all, with great power comes great responsibility.