Will Supervisory Authorities Use AI Tools in Money Laundering Supervision?

The use of innovative technologies such as Natural Language Processing (NLP) and AI promises unprecedented efficiency gains for companies. There is a whole wave of new AI companies taking advantage of the newly opened opportunities and developing new business models. It is still unclear whether the technologies, which are constantly evolving thanks to massive investments, will live up to the hype or whether a bubble is forming that threatens to burst like the dot-com bubble. At the moment, however, it seems certain that AI is here to stay and can no longer be ignored. European supervisory authorities also seem to have realized this, as shown by a report by the European Banking Authority (EBA) on the use of supervisory technology tools (known as SupTech) in money laundering supervision by national supervisory authorities. But how far has the SupTech revolution progressed in national supervisory authorities so far, and what are the consequences for supervised companies?

AMLA and the Application of SupTech

The new EU package to combat money laundering and terrorist financing of June 19, 2024 established, among other things, a new European supervisory authority to support national supervisory authorities by coordinating national money laundering authorities and ensuring uniform application of EU laws. The Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) began operations on July 1, 2025. EBA has taken the establishment of the AMLA and the associated increase in cooperation between supervisory authorities as an opportunity to examine how national authorities are already using SupTech. It summarized the results of the investigation in a report dated August 12, 2025. This report provides a good overview of current developments. The use of SupTech tools in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing (AML/CFT supervision) is still in its infancy in the EU. Many authorities are in the exploratory or early implementation phase. However, there are also great opportunities. The increasing adoption of SupTech signals a shift towards more efficient, data-driven approaches to combating financial crime. Technologies used include AI, blockchain analysis, and the generation of synthetic data to improve risk assessments and increase operational efficiency. SupTech tools are designed to improve the ability to analyze large amounts of data and gain comprehensive insights into the activities of supervised companies, automate processes, optimize resources, and increase cooperation between authorities. However, challenges remain, such as poor data quality and governance, which hinder effective use, limited budgets and necessary technological adjustments, a lack of clarity in the regulatory framework, resistance to change, and a lack of digital skills among agency staff.

FinTech Companies, Crypto Assets, and AI-Based Fraud in the Focus of the  Regulators

Despite the implementation difficulties outlined above, it seems inevitable that supervisory authorities will also adopt new technologies and thereby exercise even more efficient and comprehensive supervision over the companies concerned. As a result, companies should be even more careful than before to ensure that they comply with their anti-money laundering requirements. The focus of supervision also appears to be increasingly on FinTech companies. For example, the EBA’s Opinion of the European Banking Authority on money laundering and terrorist financing risks affecting the EU’s financial sector dated July 28, 2025 states that 70% of competent authorities in the EU report high or increasing ML/TF risks in the FinTech sector. The market share of FinTech companies is growing rapidly and promises to improve the customer experience by providing access to innovations in financial services. Supervisory authorities fear that this rapid growth will lead FinTech companies to prioritize innovation and customer acquisition over compliance, resulting in inadequate AML/CFT controls. For FinTech companies, this means that they must take a particularly careful approach to money laundering compliance. Even though this represents a high bureaucratic burden, especially for smaller companies, it is essential that the legal obligations are complied with.

Attorney Anton Schröder

I. https://fin-law.de

E. info@fin-law.de