Financial Crime Readiness Assessment
“Are we ready?”
Understand whether your financial crime controls would withstand regulatory scrutiny.
Independent judgement for smaller regulated firms. We identify where the weaknesses are, strengthen governance and recommend the changes that matter, before they become regulatory findings.
The question behind the engagement.
Most regulated firms have invested significant time in policies, procedures and financial crime controls. The harder question is whether those controls are operating as intended once the documentation is closed.
Regulators expect firms to evidence that governance, risk assessments and customer due diligence are embedded in the organisation, not simply documented.
Most weaknesses stay hidden until Internal Audit, external assurance or a supervisory inspection brings them out.
An independent perspective gives senior management an objective view of how the firm's financial crime controls are actually working, what is sound, what is weak, and where to focus before issues become regulatory concerns.
Judgement, not a checklist.
We read your Business-Wide Risk Assessment, governance papers and the last two cycles of Board reporting. We sample customer files across your highest-risk segments. We sit with the MLRO, the Head of Compliance and, where useful, Internal Audit.
We then test how governance, risk assessment and operational controls actually behave together. Where the rulebook is one thing and the lived process another, we say so.
You receive a prioritised view of what to fix first, written in language the Board can use. Recommendations are scaled to a firm of your size. If something does not need doing, we will tell you that too.
After the engagement.
- –Executive Summary
- –Independent Assessment Report
- –Detailed Findings
- –Prioritised Risk Matrix
- –Practical Recommendations
- –Remediation Roadmap
- –Board-ready Executive Summary
- –Management Debrief
- Who it's for
- Payment Institutions
- Electronic Money Institutions
- Investment Firms
- Asset Managers
- Wealth Managers
- Crypto Asset Service Providers
- Corporate Service Providers
- Family Offices
- Typical duration
- Two to four weeks.
- Delivery
- Remote, on-site or hybrid.
- Primary output
- Board-ready independent assessment with prioritised, proportionate recommendations.
- Ideal when
- Preparing for growth, AMLR implementation, governance enhancement or regulatory engagement.
- 01We read your Business-Wide Risk Assessment, governance papers and the last two cycles of Board reporting.
- 02We then test how governance, risk assessment and operational controls actually behave together.
- 03You receive a prioritised view of what to fix first, written in language the Board can use.
“Readiness is not a document. It is whether the firm could answer the next supervisory question with evidence, not assertions.”
A few considered answers.
An independent perspective on your firm's financial crime framework, considering how effectively governance, policies and operational controls operate in practice. The work identifies strengths, highlights weaknesses and provides practical recommendations before issues become regulatory findings.
Internal Audit provides important assurance over established control frameworks. Claritas Risk provides an independent advisory perspective informed by practical experience within leading international financial institutions. The focus is on how regulators are likely to view your framework, and on commercially proportionate recommendations that strengthen governance rather than simply listing deficiencies.
Payment Institutions, EMIs, Investment Firms, Wealth Managers, Asset Managers, Crypto Asset Service Providers and other regulated financial institutions seeking independent assurance over their financial crime controls.
Regulatory compliance is rarely a simple yes or no. We consider how effectively your controls align with current regulatory expectations, identify areas requiring improvement and prioritise practical actions based on your organisation's specific risk profile.
Yes. Many clients ask us to support remediation planning, review revised documentation, provide implementation guidance or undertake independent assurance once improvements have been completed.
Ready to understand where your organisation stands?
An independent perspective today can provide confidence tomorrow.