#QuickbiteCompliance day 223
Romanization: A Hidden Challenge in Fighting Financial Crime
Did you know that the way names are spelled can help criminals hide their tracks?
Romanization is the process of converting names or words from non-Latin scripts (like Arabic, Cyrillic, or Chinese) into the A-Z alphabet. But since some languages don’t have exact matches, the same name can be written in multiple ways. For example:
– Mohammed could also be Muhammad, Mohamed, or Muhamad
– Beijing might appear as Peking (an older Romanized version)
How do criminals exploit this?
Bad actors use these spelling variations to evade detection. They might:
– Open bank accounts under slightly different Romanized names to avoid sanctions screening.
– Move money across borders using aliases that look “similar enough” to bypass alerts.
– Exploit inconsistencies in databases to hide their true identity.
This is why #InclusiveRegtech and #OpenSourceAML matter—technology must adapt to handle these variations and keep financial systems safe.
Want to learn more? Check out the AML Glossary: [ACAMS Glossary](https://www.acams.org/en/resources/aml-glossary-of-terms)
#FinancialCrime #AML #Compliance #Romanization #100HariNulis