[ONLINE] The Risk-Based Approach: Understanding and Assessing AML/CFT Risk – 11 March

An effective risk-based approach requires more than assigning a risk score. Subject persons need to understand where their business is exposed, how individual customer risks arise, and what controls are appropriate to address those risks. This session explains how the Business Risk Assessment and Customer Risk Assessment operate together, how key risk factors should be assessed, and how risk ratings should translate into practical decisions. Particular attention is given to inherent and residual risk, scoring and weighting, overrides, risk appetite and the importance of documenting the rationale behind risk assessments.

Specific topics to be covered during the session

• The risk-based approach and the concepts of inherent and residual risk
• Business Risk Assessment and Customer Risk Assessment
• Customer, geographical, product/service/transaction and delivery-channel risk
• Risk methodologies, scoring, weighting and overrides
• Risk appetite and the link between risk ratings and controls
• Dynamic risk and when assessments should be reviewed or updated

Target audience for the event

This session is particularly relevant to compliance professionals, MLROs, risk professionals, directors, senior management and employees involved in customer acceptance, risk assessment or the design and operation of AML/CFT controls.

Learning objective

Participants will learn how to identify and assess ML/FT risk at both business and customer level, explain the rationale behind a risk rating, and connect risk assessment outcomes to proportionate controls and decision-making.

Why members and non-members should attend

Risk assessments drive the level of due diligence, monitoring and oversight applied in practice. A well-designed methodology is therefore central to effective AML/CFT compliance. This session helps participants move beyond mechanical scoring and understand how risk factors, judgement, evidence and risk appetite should work together to produce defensible decisions.