Major time and cost savings in banks’ know-your-customer (KYC) compliance operations are anticipated with the alignment of SWIFT’s KYC Registry with the new Wolfsberg Due Diligence Questionnaire (DDQ) for correspondent banks.

First issued in 2004, the Wolfsberg DDQ has been updated in response to an increase in regulatory expectations and a call for action from the Financial Stability Board Correspondent Banking Coordination Group and the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures.

Transparent and streamlined

KYC Registry members can now answer every Wolfsberg DDQ question directly on the registry platform, which SWIFT reckons will increase transparency and streamline due diligence processes.

Aligning the registry with the Wolfsberg DDQ ensures coverage of up to 90 per cent of the information correspondent banks typically require for KYC compliance, delivering major time and cost savings.

Thorough, timely and accurate

“Banks are expected to ensure that due diligence on their correspondents is thorough, timely and accurate,” according to head of KYC Compliance Services at SWIFT, Bart Claeys.

“Aligning The KYC Registry’s content with the Wolfsberg DDQ will enable registry users to focus their energies on risk assessment and analysis, rather than devoting valuable resources to repetitive data collection,” he concludes.