In the interview with FinanzBusiness, Krik Gunning, CEO and founder of Fourthline, discusses Fourthline’s focus on anti-money laundering solutions using AI technology. Everything, however, cannot be solved by AI. Gunning, who has extensive experience in the financial sector, highlighted the challenges of combatting money laundering, including the evolving tactics of criminals, such as the use of deepfake technology and recruiting young individuals as money couriers.
Fourthline, founded in 2017, offers a range of services from KYC onboarding to anti-money laundering solutions, serving clients in both traditional banking and fintech sectors, including companies like Trade Republic, N26, Western Union, and Nationale-Nederlanden.
Gunning emphasized the importance of continuous learning, collaboration with regulatory authorities, and the need for adaptable systems to address evolving threats while acknowledging that no system can guarantee 100% success in preventing money laundering.
Regarding the financial damage caused by money laundering, Gunning noted that it is challenging to determine the exact amount, but estimates suggest around €100 billion annually in Germany, given the covert nature of money laundering operations.
Fourthline's mission is to use technology to combat financial crime, ensuring compliance with local laws and regulations while focusing on user-friendly front-end processes for customers and efficient back-end operations for financial institutions. Fourthline distinguishes itself through the development of proprietary technologies that offer a balance between user conversion and fraud detection, achieving a fraud detection accuracy rate of 99.98%. Gunning stated that their solutions have the potential to reduce compliance costs by up to 90% through automation.
Fourthline's AI examines cases from a regulatory perspective, verifying the authenticity of individuals during KYC onboarding by analyzing ID documents' security features and photos. Gunning also acknowledged challenges related to identical twins but emphasized the use of human experts in the KYC process for complex cases.
Looking to the future, Fourthline recently raised €50 million for its fight against financial crime and plans to continue investing in its product. Gunning expressed the company's intention to collaborate with more banks globally in addressing the significant issue of financial sector criminal activity.
