Checklist: Ensuring AML Compliance for Mergers and Acquisitions

With mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and other institution consolidations on the rise, it’s essential to conduct proper due diligence. Integrating programs creates challenges for Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) Officers responsible for developing an integration plan while ensuring ongoing compliance with existing day-to-day tasks. Regulators expect that an institution’s AML compliance integrity will keep pace with its growth.

Executive management should take precautions to ensure that a strong culture of compliance, including BSA/AML, is reflected in their merger and acquisition plans. Compliance professionals must be prepared to communicate the high-risk operations, locations, products, services, and customers the target offers to management and any plans to mitigate that risk.

While not exhaustive, this three-step checklist can guide acquiring institutions to consolidate successfully and maintain AML best practices.

Download this checklist to learn:

• Steps for preparation and evaluation ahead of mergers and acquisitions, including a minimum set of questions for the M&A due diligence process
• Categories the acquirer should use for a comprehensive risk assessment of the target institution
• Critical areas that should be considered in consolidation plans during M&A

If M&A seems daunting, or if you are short-staffed, Abrigo Advisory Services can help. Learn more about how we can assist during this transition.