Financial Crime World

Bulgaria Takes Step Towards Financial Crime Prevention with FinTech Spotlight Event

Sofia, Bulgaria - The Bulgarian FinTech community recently gathered for the first-ever FinTech Spotlight event in Sofia, organized by Eleven Ventures and the European Compliance Center. This evening brought together entrepreneurs and AML/financial crime specialists to discuss compliance and financial crime prevention initiatives in Bulgaria.

The Launch of the First Bulgarian FinTech Report

The event coincided with the launch of the First Bulgarian FinTech report, which highlights Bulgaria’s position as the fastest-growing Fintech destination in the CEE region, according to the newest CEE Fintech Atlas by Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI).

The Event and Attendees

Over 40 guests from the banking and financial industries attended the event, including professionals from leading banks and financial institutions. The evening’s discussions focused on new challenges and trends in money-laundering prevention and the fight against financial crime.

Balancing Commercial and Regulatory Demands

The biggest challenge facing the FinTech community is striking a balance between commercial demands and regulatory requirements. Speakers emphasized that FinTech entrepreneurs must prioritize compliance risks from the outset, rather than attempting to implement controls later on during upscaling.

  • “Banks can act as partners, providing valuable know-how and expertise to help innovative FinTechs keep up with compliance standards,” said Dr. Elina Karpecheva, Chair of the European Compliance Centre.
  • “The key compliance principles are the same for both parties: know your risks, know your product, and know your customer.”

Automating Financial Crime Prevention

The future of FinTech compliance lies in leveraging technology to minimize manual processes and human input. Start-ups can avoid traditional financial institutions’ mistakes by being agile, flexible, and unencumbered by path-dependent systems.

  • RegTech providers are expected to continue gaining attention for their configurable, easy-to-integrate, and cost-effective regulatory solutions.
  • Automating identification and verification of clients through different information sources and identifying suspicious transactions through data mining algorithms will be crucial areas for innovation.

Call for Cross-Sectoral Engagement

Participants also emphasized the need for more cross-sectoral engagement among firms, regulators, and compliance professionals to communicate and align national AML regimes with international standards. The FinTech Spotlight event is the beginning of initiatives that aim to bring together businesses, the public sector, academics, and other stakeholders interested in compliance and integrity.

  • “Positive social change will come only when professionals and organizations work together and share ideas and best practices,” said Dr. Elina Karpecheva, Chair of the European Compliance Centre.