Piotr Putyra Featured in FinanceX Magazine on AI in KYC/AML and Regulatory Responsibility

Piotr Putyra, Managing Partner and Barrister at Dudkowiak & Putyra, was featured in the 22nd Edition of FinanceX Magazine. His article, “AI in KYC/AML: Balancing Efficiency and Regulatory Responsibility,” appeared in the May issue dedicated to RegTech – the area where financial regulation, compliance and technology increasingly intersect.

The edition explores how compliance is becoming one of the strategic frontiers in financial services, covering topics such as AI-driven KYC/AML, supervisory technology, the EUDI Wallet, DORA, NIS2 and automation in compliance operations.

In his contribution, Piotr Putyra addressed a key challenge for financial institutions: how to use artificial intelligence in KYC and AML processes without losing transparency, accountability and regulatory control.

AI in KYC and AML: efficiency with regulatory implications

Artificial intelligence is increasingly used by banks, fintech companies and other regulated entities to support customer onboarding, sanctions screening, transaction monitoring, risk scoring and suspicious activity detection.

These tools can reduce manual work, speed up verification, detect unusual patterns faster and help compliance teams process large volumes of data more effectively. In KYC and AML, this may support more dynamic and risk-sensitive monitoring.

However, as highlighted in the article, AI in financial compliance is not only a matter of operational efficiency. It also raises important questions about governance, supervision and responsibility.

Automation cannot replace accountability

The central issue discussed by Piotr Putyra is that AI may support compliance processes, but it cannot replace the responsibility of financial institutions.

Where AI systems influence customer risk assessment, onboarding, enhanced due diligence or suspicious activity reporting, institutions must understand how these tools work and how their outputs are reviewed.

AI-based KYC and AML tools may process sensitive personal and transactional data and generate classifications that affect access to financial services or trigger further scrutiny. For this reason, they cannot be treated as a “black box”.

Financial institutions need proper governance, documentation, human oversight and auditability.

RegTech as a strategic priority

The FinanceX Magazine issue places this discussion in the broader context of RegTech. Compliance is no longer only a back-office function. It is becoming a strategic capability for financial institutions operating in a highly regulated and technology-driven market.

AI-driven AML systems, digital identity solutions, operational resilience obligations and cybersecurity requirements are changing how financial institutions design and manage internal controls.

What financial institutions should do now?

Financial institutions using or planning to use AI in KYC and AML should review their internal governance frameworks and ensure that technology adoption is aligned with regulatory expectations.

In particular, they should:

• map existing and planned AI use cases in compliance processes;
• assess how AI tools affect customer onboarding, monitoring and risk scoring;
• verify GDPR, AML and AI Act implications;
• introduce clear human oversight procedures;
• document decision-making processes and escalation paths;
• review contracts with RegTech vendors;
• involve legal, compliance, IT security and data protection teams at an early stage.

The message is clear: AI can make KYC and AML processes more efficient, but efficiency must be balanced with accountability.

Why this matters for financial institutions?

The discussion presented by Piotr Putyra in FinanceX Magazine’s 22nd Edition confirms that the future of compliance will not be purely technological. AI can make KYC and AML processes more efficient, but financial institutions still need clear governance, proper documentation, human oversight and regulatory accountability.

As RegTech continues to reshape the financial sector, the key challenge will be to combine innovation with responsible implementation. For banks, fintech companies and other regulated entities, this means treating AI not only as an operational tool, but also as an area requiring careful legal, compliance and risk management review.