Why traceability and trust are vital for compliance technology

traceability

In an age where the regulatory landscape is getting more complex and multifaceted by the year, compliance as a box-ticking activity is becoming a step not far enough for many financial firms. To meet the moment, many businesses are needing to demonstrate more traceability and accountability in their compliance operations.  

In the view of Holly Sais Philippi, CEO of Alessa, with compliance technology being a vital part of operational efficiency and regulatory adherence for financial, traceability and trust are not just critical – they are non-negotiable.

She said, “Traceability ensures a clear, auditable record of every action, decision, and data point within the compliance process. It allows internal stakeholders to retrace steps, identify potential risks, and prove adherence to internal policies and regulatory requirements.

“Trust, on the other hand, ensures that the technology reliably performs as intended, safeguarding sensitive data and delivering accurate deliverables and insights. These two elements—traceability and trust—form the backbone of any strong compliance framework. Without them, decision-making feels like walking a tightrope without a safety net,” she said.

What happens when firms are found wanting in this area? According to Philippi, such a development is a recipe for disaster.

“Without traceability, transparency goes out the window,” she said. “Regulators demand clear evidence of compliance, and without it, firms face fines, audits, or worse. Let’s not forget the operational chaos—if you can’t trace the root cause of an error, how do you fix it? Trust issues only add fuel to the fire.”

If the technology then spits out inconsistent or unreliable results, the Alessa head remarked, it leaves businesses exposed to undetected compliance breaches and data vulnerabilities. She added that it’s not just about avoiding penalties. Often, a lack of trust can erode confidence from all sides, including customers, regulators and even your own team.

Philippi gave case studies examples to show the real-life consequences, referencing a major bank in 2020 that faced significant fines after regulators discovered it had failed to properly trace the source and destination of certain high-risk transactions.

“Without traceable compliance technology in place, the institution couldn’t provide clear audit trails to demonstrate how these transactions were vetted for AML compliance. As a result, the bank was penalized millions of dollars, and its reputation took a significant hit. This lack of traceability not only led to financial consequences but also damaged trust with customers, stakeholders, and regulators,” she explained.

In a more recent development, a global investment firm suffered a data breach caused by an unreliable compliance system that flagged transactions inconsistently.

Philippi remarked, “The platform failed to accurately identify suspicious activities, allowing fraudulent transactions to go unnoticed for months. When the breach came to light, the firm faced intense scrutiny from regulators and a significant loss of investor confidence. The inability to trust their technology not only resulted in operational inefficiencies but also led to costly legal battles and reputational damage.”

So, how do businesses get this right? For Philippi, it starts with choosing technology that puts first traceability and trust from the ground up – and this should be at the core of any tech used within the compliance organisation.

“Audit trails and data lineage capabilities should be non-negotiable. These aren’t just buzzwords—they’re practical tools that give you granular visibility into every aspect of ensuring the organization is not doing with business with bad actors,” she said. “But picking the right tech isn’t enough. Firms need to vet providers rigorously, looking for third-party certifications and a proven track record of data security. Regular audits and performance tests should be part of the routine to keep the technology honest and reliable. And let’s not overlook the importance of integration—compliance technology shouldn’t live in a silo. It needs to align with the firm’s broader risk management systems to create a cohesive and dependable framework.”

Philippi concluded by stressing that at the end of the day, traceability and trust aren’t just features – they are safeguards. They empower businesses to navigate complex regulatory landscapes with confidence and resilience.

“Investing in technology that embodies these principles isn’t just a strategic decision; it’s a cultural one. It sets the tone for transparency, accountability, and long-term success. In a world where even minor missteps can have catastrophic consequences, building that foundation is worth every effort,” she said.

Increased value

South African RegTech firm RelyComply believes that across any industry, transparency around data usage, privacy and the process is becoming more valued that ever to maintain trust and safety.

The company said, “Supply chains can be complex and vague, which, flying under the radar, could increase the risk of funds (or other goods) ending up where they shouldn’t and implicating innocent companies or individuals. Today’s precarious geopolitical climate has also created an environment where dubious news sources, politically exposed persons, sanctions or elaborate identity crimes can negatively affect anybody connected to the internet, with worrying real-life consequences.”

The fact that some financial institutions lack clear explanations for collecting KYC data or conducting AML checks is not good enough for regulators, claims the company. “Significant fines in recent years have shown that there must be reliable proof in the pudding: tangible documented evidence that customer identities, behaviours and transactions are screened, flagged and recorded regularly with utmost accuracy. When practised on a large scale, this separates legitimate actors from those that can immediately harm the entire financial system’s integrity. In the long run, it halts faulty compliance measures and the dire impact of launderers or terrorist financiers.”

RelyComply also highlighted that many institutions have a base-level expectation to override disparate systems and manual tasks. A lot, they claim, is asked of RegTech, but it can reduce the effects of human error and boost trust in a businesses’ compliance efforts.

It added, “Singular platforms can create a single source of truth that tracks activity throughout the whole AML process, from digitally identifying that customers are who they say they are to consistently monitoring and validating data (even in such diverse formats as various digital currencies, blockchain transactions or adverse media), and all according to ever-shifting regulatory requirements and trusted watchlists on both a global and local scale.

“When alerts, risk assessment and reporting tools are collated in one place, it’s easier to substantiate suspicious action reports or compliance audits with accurately traced AML data. Trust and accountability are built from the ground up. In this case, RegTech is better equipped to safeguard data and predict dynamic shifts in criminal typologies to protect our interconnected financial world.”

Regulation and guidelines

Traceability and trustworthiness were and are being addressed by legislators and regulators globally for many years now, claims legal, governance and regulatory affairs director at Muinmos Michael Thirer.

He explained, “Sometimes it is done through specific regulation such as eIDAS, the European digital identity providers regulation. More frequently it is being addressed more generally, for example through outsourcing guidelines, such as the EBA’s Guidelines on Outsourcing Arrangements. Another relevant body of regulation is AI regulation, which is especially focused on trustworthiness, and making sure AI-based decisions are transparent and explainable.”

He added that DORA also covers this topic, and sets a very robust ICT risk management framework. “This includes, among other things, maintaining an up-to-date register of ICT service providers, testing the reliability of services, setting high digital resilience goals, and more,” he said.

He went on, “When it comes to data, of course, EU GDPR and similar frameworks require financial institutions to know where is their data processed, stored – which helped elevate the levels of trust and traceability of data across the globe.”

If a financial organisation implements the requirements of the aforementioned, Thirer believes it means it can be sure its compliance solutions are trustworthy.

“In this regard, it is also worth noting that selecting a vendor which is ISO 27001 certified helps both when it comes to compliance with DORA (as the ISO 27001 certification covers most of the DORA requirements of vendors) and with GDPR. This makes vendor management in this sense a lot easier,” he said.

Kate Horgan, head of business development-US at Zeidler, believes that traceability and trust are indispensable for compliance technology as financial firms navigate increasingly complex regulatory requirements.

She explained, “Frameworks such as the Central Bank of Ireland’s CP86, CSSF Circular 18/698 (Luxembourg), the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (US), and SEC guidance on vendor oversight demand clear audit trails, robust risk management, and demonstrable compliance with distribution oversight, governance, and cybersecurity standards.

“Without traceable and trustworthy technology, firms risk non-compliance, operational inefficiencies, and reputational damage, as well as penalties for failing to meet regulatory mandates. Vendor and counterparty due diligence can be a time-consuming and arduous process, often delayed by slow response times from vendors,” she added.

Horgan highlighted how Zeidler partnered with its clients to ensure customisable workflows, scalable features and robust security in order to help firms confidently meet regulatory obligations while fostering transparency and trust.

“In today’s stringent regulatory environment, compliance technology that meets these standards is essential for success,” she finished.

In the age of AI

In the opinion of Venky Yerrapotu, CEO of 4CRisk.ai, compliance technology and any technology supporting parts of the business that are under regulatory requirements, must provide traceability and adhere to basic trust principles.

He stated, “This is becoming much more of a concern as we adopt more AI technology and Agents, that process transactions at machine speed, not human speed. Good technology will have checks and balances built in to be effective. Good technology will provide auditability and role-based access. AI principles of transparency, explainability and security are table stakes for any technology today.”

Ensuring human-in-the-loop reviews occur at vital steps in the process can be a permanent feature or a temporary inspection point until confidence in results is achieved, stated Yerrapotu.

He added, “Choosing products and solutions meeting these basic requirements will go a long way to ensuring compliance technology ticks the boxes of traceability and trust.”

No room for error

The stakes are high for businesses that fall foul of regulation in the modern day, and there really is no room for error. As Fraser Mitchell – chief product officer at SmartSearch underlines – with nearly three-quarters (72%) of regulated companies feeling overwhelmed by ongoing anti-financial crime compliance demands and 89% finding current regulations challenging to navigate, it’s no wonder firms seeking help from specialist compliance tech partners.

He stated, “It is imperative that firms can trust the outcomes generated from the tech they use, which is why traceability is key. Organisations should look to prioritise partners and solutions with extensive data coverage from trusted, reliable sources, and that deliver clear, accessible reports on their AML checks.

“That way, businesses have a traceable record of why decisions were taken and can trust that any red flags will be promptly raised if something doesn’t look right.”

Madhu Nadig, co-founder at Flagright, emphasised that with financial institutions operating under increasingly intense regulatory scrutiny, if they can’t prove why a decision was made, they’re making more trouble for themselves.

He remarked, “When compliance decisions aren’t traceable, things can get messy. Regulators won’t trust you, audits become a nightmare if you can’t show a clear decision-making trail. False positives also pile up, as without transparency, compliance teams waste time chasing bad leads. Additionally, you’re exposed to risk – if fraud slips through the cracks and there’s no record of what went wrong, good luck explaining that to regulators.”

How can businesses fix this? Firstly, Nadig suggests starting with automating audit trails. “Every compliance action should be logged, timestamped, and reviewable. No missing pieces. Also, use explainable AI, AI is great, but if you can’t explain why it flagged something, it’s not useful. Businesses should also invest in tech built for trust.”

“At the end of the day, compliance is about proving you did everything right. That’s why traceability is survival,” Nadig said.

Similarly, Chris Doyle, chief strategist at Ascent, believes that in today’s complex and dynamic regulatory lifecycle, a robust and high-trust regulatory understanding is absolutely vital for risk and compliance success.

He said, “From our perspective, trust starts with both a robust Regulatory Map, defining all of the regulators and rulesets that apply to the firm, and a rock-solid Obligations Inventory, which is a register of the specific requirements (obligations) that apply to the business.

“Taking the time to compile these foundational elements is challenging, but enables firms to apply technology to power change management and eliminate risk caused by hidden gaps. Traceability is then a function of connecting the rock-solid Obligation Inventory to downstream policies and controls, and leveraging technology that can connect the dots between all these elements to quickly identify impacts for teams to address.”

Anna Shute, product manager at Quin, also emphasised that traceability is crucial for all compliance user actions to know exactly who made what change, why and when.

She detailed, “This underpins any KYC process and decision that needs to be taken, building trust in actions taken. It provides a way for organisations to determine conformity with current KYC policies, whilst also giving the opportunity to effectively address any non-conformities in investigations, by establishing more information and reasoning. Traceability is also essential when auditing accounts.”

“Compliance software stores sensitive information which must be securely encrypted and safe from cyber threats in order for clients to trust your organisation and therefore, use your services,” Shute said. “If traceability isn’t at the core of compliance processes, understanding customers’ behaviour can become convoluted and regulations not met. Using compliance software can immediately and effortlessly track client actions and operations with no disruption to current procedures.”

The backbone

Meanwhile, Anthony Quinn, CEO of Arctic Intelligence, believes that traceability and trust are the ‘backbone’ of effective compliance technology.

He said, “Without a clear audit trail and confidence in a vendor platform’s integrity, regulated businesses run the risk of regulatory breaches, operational inefficiencies, and erosion of stakeholder confidence. In compliance, if you can’t prove it, it’s like it didn’t happen so it is critical to ensure compliance technology can be relied upon”

How can RegTech solutions ensure they deliver on this vital aspect? Regulated businesses, Quinn claims, must prioritise solutions with transparent audit trails, robust data integrity, and alignment with regulatory standards. “Regular testing, independent validation, and a strong focus on information security risk management are essential to maintain stakeholder confidence and meet compliance obligations,” Quinn concluded.

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