Global analytics and artificial intelligence firm SAS Institute Inc is intensifying its efforts to address financial crime in Malaysia, using advanced technologies to respond to increasingly sophisticated fraud tactics. Financial institutions are facing a widening range of threats, including deepfake incidents, cryptocurrency-related scams, and the growing use of mule accounts, according to SAS managing director for Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, Febrianto Siboro.

He noted that these threats are not only occurring with greater frequency but are also causing significant financial losses on a global scale. In Malaysia, for example, 454 reported cases involving deepfake technology have led to RM2.27 million in losses. Meanwhile, fraud connected to cryptocurrencies has resulted in RM1.6 billion in damages across 35,368 cases. The use of mule accounts is also becoming more widespread, with more than 200,000 cases reported since 2023.

Siboro said that the integration of anti-money laundering and fraud prevention strategies is central to SAS’s method. The company employs a unified platform that encompasses data management, risk evaluation, detection, and reporting, in order to help banks tackle financial crime more effectively. This approach is designed to streamline compliance by enabling both anti-money laundering and fraud detection to operate from a single set of tools and data streams.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning play a key role in the platform. The adoption of AI in anti-fraud efforts is expected to triple within two years, with 83 per cent of organisations indicating plans to implement generative AI. However, Siboro emphasised that technology alone is not sufficient. “Having technology is not enough, human expertise is critical,” he said.

SAS is working with financial institutions to migrate towards unified analytics systems that can support a variety of functions, including regulatory compliance, operational decision-making, and fraud detection. The aim is to reposition compliance not merely as a regulatory requirement but as a strategic asset that allows banks to derive greater value from their data.

The firm expects ongoing changes in the financial crime environment and anticipates that, by 2025, more banks will have reached a mature stage in their adoption of AI. Broader implementation of behaviour analytics, automated fraud alerts, and risk scoring is also expected as part of this shift.

(Source: NST) 

• TAGS:
• Anti-Money Laundering
• Artificial Intelligence
• Cybersecurity
• Deepfake Scams
• Financial Crime
• Fraud Prevention
• SAS Institute