Digital KYC Onboarding

In AML compliance, assessing the “nature and purpose” means understanding why a customer is using your services and how they intend to use them. It’s a required part of Customer Due Diligence (CDD) that helps you detect activity that doesn’t match the expected profile.

It helps identify whether a customer’s behavior aligns with legitimate use. For example:

• A student opening a high-volume business account may raise red flags

• A foreign buyer purchasing property with no local ties may require EDD
  

Understanding context lets you assign an appropriate risk level and catch unusual patterns early.

Anqa’s platform guides you to collect answers to key questions like:

• What services is the customer seeking?

• What is the source of their income or funds?

• Are they acting on behalf of someone else?

• Is the activity consistent with their profile or profession?

• Are there any geographic or sector-based risks involved?

You don’t need to ask everything at once—but you should collect enough to understand the client’s intent.

Yes, though the depth of assessment depends on the risk level. For low-risk clients, a few simple onboarding questions may suffice. For higher-risk customers, especially those involving cross-border transactions, trusts, or large payments, a more detailed understanding is essential.

Anqa automates this step by:

• Embedding smart intake questions during onboarding

• Simplified nature and purpose for straight forward customer relationships

• Detailed nature and purpose module within the customers KYC profile for easy reference

• Logging responses for audits and reviews

This reduces the chance of missing key context while keeping workflows lightweight.

Not exactly. The nature and purpose check is a component of your overall AML risk assessment. It informs how you categorise the customer (low, medium, or high risk), and whether Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) is needed.

It complements other checks like KYC, sanctions screening, and transaction monitoring.

A risk assessment will relate to your business specific risks.

Be cautious if a customer:

• Can’t explain why they need the service

• Offers vague or inconsistent answers

• Insists on speed or secrecy

• Says someone else will be using the account or service

• Provides a business explanation that doesn’t match their background

These signs may indicate hidden ownership, laundering attempts, or misuse.

Yes—and Anqa provides one. Our platform includes adaptable templates that:

• Ask the right questions based on customer type

• Store responses securely

• Let you flag follow-ups automatically

You can also customize the questions to suit local regulations or industry norms.