As a FINRA-regulated broker-dealer, maintaining robust Know Your Customer (KYC), Know Your Business (KYB), and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) workflows is essential to comply with regulatory requirements and safeguard your firm against financial crimes.
Below is a checklist to help ensure your compliance programs align with FINRA rules:
1. Know Your Customer (KYC)
Customer Identification Program (CIP):
Collect and verify essential customer information:
Full name
Date of birth
Address
Identification number
Maintain records of the identification information and verification methods used.
Customer Due Diligence (CDD):
Understand the nature and purpose of customer relationships to develop a risk profile.
Conduct ongoing monitoring to identify and report suspicious activities.
Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD):
Apply additional scrutiny to high-risk customers, such as politically exposed persons (PEPs) or those from high-risk jurisdictions.
Gather information on the source of funds and wealth.
Relevant FINRA Rule:
FINRA Rule 2090 – Know Your Customer: Requires firms to use reasonable diligence to know and retain essential facts concerning every customer. FINRA
2. Know Your Business (KYB)
Business Entity Verification:
Verify the legal status and ownership structure of corporate clients.
Identify and verify beneficial owners with a 25% or more ownership stake.
Risk Assessment:
Assess the nature of the business, its products, services, and customer base to determine risk levels.
Ongoing Monitoring:
Continuously monitor business accounts for unusual or suspicious activities.
Relevant FINRA Guidance:
While FINRA does not have a specific rule titled “KYB,” the principles of customer due diligence and AML compliance extend to business entities.
3. Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Compliance
Written AML Program:
Develop and implement a written AML program approved by senior management.
Ensure the program is reasonably designed to achieve compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and its implementing regulations.
Independent Testing:
Conduct independent testing of the AML program at least annually to assess its effectiveness.
Designated AML Compliance Officer:
Appoint a qualified individual responsible for overseeing AML compliance.
Ongoing Training:
Provide ongoing training for appropriate personnel to ensure awareness of AML responsibilities.
Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR):
Establish procedures for detecting and reporting suspicious transactions to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).
Relevant FINRA Rule:
FINRA Rule 3310 – Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Program: Sets forth minimum standards for AML compliance programs, including the requirements mentioned above. FINRA
Additional Considerations
Recordkeeping:
Maintain comprehensive records of all customer information, transaction reports, and compliance efforts as required by FINRA and the BSA.
Risk-Based Approach:
Implement a risk-based approach to AML compliance, allocating resources commensurate with the level of risk identified.
Regulatory Updates:
Stay informed about updates to FINRA rules and federal regulations to ensure ongoing compliance.
By adhering to this checklist and the associated FINRA rules, your firm can establish robust KYC, KYB, and AML workflows that not only comply with regulatory requirements but also protect against financial crimes and enhance overall operational integrity.
Meet Jamie—a compliance officer at a U.S. financial services firm regulated by FinCEN, FINRA, and the SEC. Jamie knows the stakes: missing adverse media about a potential client could lead to fines, reputational damage, or worse. But performing these checks manually often feels like searching for a needle in a haystack. Here’s how Jamie’s experience shifts when using iComply’s AML solution.
Manual Adverse Media Screening: A Complex Process
To comply with regulatory expectations, Jamie manually searches online articles, government reports, and social media for red flags like fraud, money laundering, or corruption. Each platform requires tweaking keywords and combing through endless irrelevant hits.
Overwhelming Data: Vast amounts of news, blogs, and public records make it easy to miss critical insights.
Time-Consuming Tasks: Cross-referencing names with sanctions lists, PEP databases, and legal filings means hours—sometimes days—of effort.
Risk of Outdated Info: By the time Jamie compiles findings, new updates might surface, requiring a re-check.
Even after all that, Jamie still has to organize the findings into an audit-ready report for internal review and potential regulatory inspections.
Adverse Media Screening with iComply: A Seamless Workflow
With iComply’s AML platform, Jamie’s adverse media screening becomes faster and more reliable:
Real-Time Data Collection: iComply automatically pulls global news, blogs, and regulatory announcements in seconds—including U.S. and international media sources.
AI-Driven Precision: Advanced machine learning filters out irrelevant results, significantly reducing false positives while prioritizing high-risk alerts.
Automated Cross-Checks: The system compares findings against global watchlists, sanctions databases, and adverse media archives automatically—no manual entry needed.
Instant Reports: With one click, Jamie generates a comprehensive, audit-ready report with risk scores, dates, and classifications.
This streamlined process helps Jamie stay compliant with FinCEN’s AML rules, FINRA’s due diligence standards, and the SEC’s anti-fraud requirements—all without the manual guesswork.
The iComply Advantage
For Jamie, manually compiling adverse media reports used to take hours and left room for human error. With iComply, it takes minutes. The result? Faster compliance checks, reduced risks, and more time for strategic oversight.
Is your compliance team ready to simplify adverse media screening? iComply’s AML solution empowers financial institutions to meet FinCEN, FINRA, and SEC standards while making compliance faster, smarter, and more secure. Let’s make it happen.
Meet Emily—a compliance officer managing KYC processes for an international financial firm. Like many businesses, her firm relies on multiple third-party tools, each with its own subprocessors scattered across various countries. Every time a new customer submits their documents, the data embarks on a long and risky journey—hopping across networks, servers, and regions before returning as a completed KYC profile.
But what if that journey could be shorter, safer, and entirely within the organization’s control? Enter edge computing—a game-changer that keeps sensitive data local, secure, and compliant. Here’s a closer look at the difference it makes.
The Legacy KYC Data Journey
Emily’s current KYC process starts with a customer uploading identification documents through a third-party portal. These documents travel to cloud-based services for validation and verification, often crossing borders and passing through international subprocessors.
Each stop introduces new risks:
Data Exposure: Sensitive information is transmitted over multiple networks.
Jurisdictional Complexity: Different data privacy regulations apply at each stage.
Increased Latency: Every transfer adds time, creating frustrating delays for customers and compliance teams alike.
When regulations like GDPR or U.S. Data Privacy Framework require local data storage, this scattered process becomes a compliance headache—and a potential security vulnerability.
The Edge Computing KYC Data Journey
Now imagine the same process using edge computing. When Emily’s customer uploads their documents, something different happens:
Local Processing: The data is encrypted, authenticated, and validated on the customer’s device or a nearby edge node before it leaves the network.
Direct Transfer: Once verified, only the necessary data is securely sent to Emily’s local server, staying within jurisdictional boundaries.
Faster Decision-Making: No detours through third-party subprocessors or distant cloud servers—just fast, secure compliance processing.
With edge computing, Emily’s KYC process is not only faster but also privacy-focused, meeting data localization laws without added complexity.
Key Benefits of Edge Computing for KYC Compliance
Data Sovereignty by Design Edge computing keeps customer data within required jurisdictions, making compliance with data localization laws seamless. No international subprocessors, no regulatory gray areas—just clear control over where and how data is handled.
Stronger Security By encrypting and validating documents at the source, edge computing minimizes data exposure during transmission. Sensitive information never travels unsecured through multiple systems, drastically reducing the attack surface.
Reduced Latency and Costs Processing data locally means faster verification times—often within seconds. This eliminates the lag caused by data bouncing between external servers and cuts cloud storage and transmission costs.
The Future of Compliance Is Edge-Based
For Emily’s firm, the switch to edge computing transformed KYC from a risky journey to a secure, streamlined experience. Customers appreciated faster onboarding, while Emily’s team gained confidence in their compliance processes, knowing sensitive data stayed secure and audit-ready.
Are you ready to take control of your compliance data journey? With iComply’s edge computing solutions, you can enhance privacy, reduce risks, and future-proof your compliance strategy. Let’s redefine compliance together.
Meet Alex—a compliance analyst onboarding a new corporate client. The company looks legitimate, but beneficial ownership is often more complex than it appears. With layers of holding companies and indirect stakeholders, missing key details could mean regulatory trouble—or worse. Fortunately, with the right system, Alex’s beneficial ownership reviews can be streamlined, secure, and insightful.
Alex’s Approach to Beneficial Ownership Reviews
Instead of hunting through emails and databases, Alex pulls director filings, shareholder lists, and organizational charts automatically from trusted global sources. This gives him an instant overview of the company’s structure and connections—even across multiple jurisdictions. Once the data is collected, Alex focuses on identifying individuals with 25% or more ownership or control. He cross-checks these key players against watchlists, sanctions, and adverse media to flag potential risks early.
To close the loop, Alex compiles findings into an audit-ready report—no manual spreadsheets or patchwork PDFs. With one click, he generates a detailed summary that tracks every step of his review, making audits painless and ensuring regulatory requirements are met. Real-time alerts and built-in compliance checks mean Alex stays proactive, not reactive.
Key Considerations for Complex Beneficial Ownership
Trusts, Shells, and Hidden Layers: Ownership isn’t always direct. Many firms use trusts or shell companies to obscure control. A robust compliance platform helps uncover indirect ownership and manage ownership percentages with transparency.
Global Variations in Ownership Laws: Each jurisdiction may have different thresholds and definitions for beneficial ownership. Your system should adapt to local regulations while maintaining a unified global view.
Dynamic Ownership Changes: Ownership structures evolve due to mergers, investments, and leadership shifts. Continuous monitoring ensures you catch changes that could impact compliance long after onboarding.
Make Compliance Your Strength
With iComply, beneficial ownership reviews become an integral part of a smarter, more secure due diligence process. Automating data collection and verification saves time, reduces errors, and keeps your compliance team a step ahead. Ready to transform your approach? Let’s get started.
Sarah, a compliance manager at a U.S. broker-dealer, had seen it all—delays, endless emails, and frustrated clients. She knew her team needed something better.
That’s when she found iComply.
Step 1: Simplify from Day One No more patchwork solutions. Sarah’s team set up iComply’s KYC and AML modules in days—not weeks. With custom workflows and a branded client portal, onboarding felt seamless, not stressful.
Step 2: Automate the Boring Stuff Instead of manually tracking sanctions lists or verifying documents, Sarah’s team let iComply handle it. Real-time alerts kept them ahead of risks, while audit-ready reports were just a click away.
Step 3: Keep It Secure, Keep It Compliant Data encryption, secure API integrations, and role-based access meant no more sleepless nights about data breaches or failed audits.
Quick-Start Checklist for Compliance Teams
Map your current onboarding process.
Enable only the compliance features you need.
Automate document requests and approvals.
Set up real-time alerts for PEPs and sanctions.
Customize reports for audit season.
In minutes, not months, Sarah’s team had a smarter compliance process that saved time and improved client trust.
Want the same results? Let’s make compliance seamless together.
“Chandy,” is a technology and risk expert with executive experience at Boston Consulting Group, Citi, and PwC. With over two decades in financial services, digital transformation, and enterprise risk, he advises iComply on scalable compliance infrastructure for global markets.
Thomas is a global tax and compliance expert with deep specialization in digital assets, blockchain, and tokenization. As a partner at MME Legal | Tax | Compliance, he advises iComply on regulatory strategy, cross-border compliance, and digital finance innovation.
Thomas is a renowned identity and cybersecurity expert, serving as CTO of Connection Science at MIT. With deep expertise in decentralized identity, zero trust, and secure data exchange, he advises iComply on cutting-edge technology and privacy-first compliance architecture.
Rodney is the former President of ADP Canada and international executive with over two decades of leadership in global HR and enterprise technology. He advises iComply with deep expertise in international service delivery, M&A, and scaling high-growth operations across regulated markets.
Praveen is a serial entrepreneur and technology innovator, known for leadership roles at Lucent Bell Labs, ChargePoint, and the Stanford Linear Accelerator. He advises iComply on advanced computing, scalable infrastructure, and the intersection of AI, energy, and compliance tech.
Paul is a Canadian RegTech leader and founder of Maple Peak Group, with extensive experience in financial services compliance, AML, and digital transformation. He advises iComply on regulatory alignment, operational strategy, and scaling compliance programs in complex markets.
John is a seasoned business executive with senior leadership experience at CIBC, UBS, and Accenture. With deep expertise in investment banking, private equity, and digital transformation, he advises iComply on strategic growth, partnerships, and global market expansion.
Jeff is a former CFTC official and globally recognized expert in financial regulation, fintech, and digital assets. As founder of Bandman Advisors, he brings deep insight into regulatory policy, market infrastructure, and innovation to guide iComply’s global compliance strategy.
Greg is a seasoned investment banker with over 35 years of experience, including leadership roles at BMO Capital Markets, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup. Greg brings deep expertise in financial strategy and growth to support iComply's expansion in the RegTech sector.
Deven is the former President of S&P and a globally respected authority in risk, data, and capital markets. With decades of leadership across financial services and tech, he advises iComply on strategic growth, governance, and the future of trusted data in AML compliance.
