FinTech LIVE Singapore: Swift on Financial Crime Compliance
At FinTech LIVE Singapore 2025, Avalon Ingram from Swift shared key insights into the evolving landscape of financial crime compliance, highlighting the challenges posed by sophisticated criminals and the role of innovation in staying ahead.
The growing complexity of financial crime
During the fireside chat at Avalon underscores the increasing sophistication of financial crime.
Gone are the days of unsophisticated criminals; instead, financial institutions now face highly adaptive criminal enterprises.
“We're very much dealing with sophisticated enterprise. And if we don't believe that criminals are adapting at pace, then we're missing a trick here a little bit,” Avalon states.
Fraud losses have risen to staggering levels, with some estimates suggesting they may even surpass the narcotics trade.
The emergence of new technologies, including cryptocurrency, has further complicated the landscape, providing criminals with new avenues to move illicit funds.
While many of these threats are not entirely new, their methods have evolved, making it imperative for financial institutions to adapt accordingly.
At the same time, businesses must balance compliance with competitiveness. “We're seeing more of a need for our institution to be incredibly adaptive and innovative while at the same time trying to remain competitive in highly competitive markets,” Avalon explains.
Compliance is just the starting point
When asked about the role of compliance in mitigating financial crime, Avalon is clear: meeting regulatory standards alone is no longer enough.
“Being compliant with regulation now is our license to operate. And we have to do this because it not only is the right thing within the markets that we operate, but a lot of this comes down to the security of our customers and that should touch all of us at a very human level,” Avalon says.
She stresses that compliance officers today are moving away from a tick-box approach and instead focusing on the real-world impact of financial crime.
Rather than viewing fraudulent transactions as just numbers, the industry must recognise that these crimes often result in victims losing life savings.
However, financial institutions must also strike a balance between security and user experience.
Overly stringent measures could deter legitimate customers, which is why “safety by design” must be a key principle. “That's why it's so important that compliance works alongside business lines and not in a silo from business lines,” Avalon notes.
AI: A double-edged sword in financial crime compliance
Unsurprisingly, AI is a key theme of the discussion. AI is now being used by both financial institutions and criminals, making it a powerful yet dangerous tool.
“You can't open Google or any news outlet and talk about fraud and not talk about the use of AI,” Avalon points out.
AI-driven scams, including deepfake fraud and CEO impersonation schemes, are becoming more prevalent.
Criminals are quick to exploit advancements in technology, often outpacing financial institutions that must navigate regulatory constraints.
Avalon warns of the rising threat of “generative AI,” a more autonomous form of AI that can operate with minimal human intervention. “We need to be thinking about how they could potentially be used to exploit our own vulnerabilities,” she says, highlighting the risks posed by AI-powered phishing and ransomware attacks.
While financial institutions are working to harness AI for defence, Avalon acknowledges that the sector’s ability to implement new technologies is often hampered by regulatory hurdles.
Criminals, on the other hand, face no such barriers, allowing them to innovate at a much faster pace.
Collaboration is key to fighting financial crime
One of the most pressing challenges in financial crime compliance is the lack of cross-border information sharing. Criminal networks operate globally, yet regulatory frameworks are often restricted to national borders.
“Our defences also need to be transnational. And so we can't keep on fighting the same fight, using weapons of an environment that we're no longer in,” Avalon emphasises.
While some countries have made progress in data-sharing initiatives, Avalon calls for a more unified approach, leveraging privacy-enhancing technologies to facilitate secure collaboration.
“At some point, we need to stop talking about it. And we also need to take that step forward and someone needs to go. Do you know what? Let's test it out. Let's test how we can safely share information cross-border. And let's look at the true effectiveness of it,” she stresses.
Financial crime compliance is an ever-evolving challenge, requiring institutions to be agile, innovative, and collaborative.
As Avalon Ingram highlights at FinTech LIVE Singapore, businesses must not only stay compliant but also be proactive in adapting to emerging threats.
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