Risk and Compliance

Risk and Compliance

BCG Expand benchmarks risk-management cost, regulatory overhead, control effectiveness, and capital impact versus peers to improve resilience while reducing compliance drag on profitability.

Our Risk and Compliance Solutions

The Problem

  • ✔Rising regulatory burden increasing costs.
  • ✔Hesitation to measure ROI in terms of efficiency (fear of cutting too far).
  • ✔Fragmented technology landscape (internal builds + third-party solutions).
  • ✔Challenges in aligning risk frameworks with business strategy.
  • ✔Processes around the identification, management, reporting and monitoring of Risk & Compliance.
  • ✔Inefficient resourcing models, including high contractor dependency and weak location leverage.

Client success stories

R&C Cost Reduction Reduced operating costs in R&C by 15–20% through benchmark-informed restructuring.
25% reduction in transaction monitoring alert processing times post report production and process review
10% reduction in consultant costs following internal review of BCG Expand report regarding peer review analysis
Organisational Restructuring Strengthened workforce productivity by rebalancing spans and layers and optimising financial crime sub-divisions

Case Studies

Tier-1 European Bank

Cost and headcount benchmarking insights guided a strategic redesign of the bank’s financial crime operating model, delivering significant efficiency gains and informing multi-year investment decisions.

Regional American Bank

Operational efficiency diagnostics identified optimisation opportunities across TM, sanctions, and KYC, enabling the bank to reduce unit costs and streamline staffing levels while maintaining strong control performance

How we can help

Cost & Resourcing Benchmarking

We conduct quantitative and qualitative benchmarking across product domains to analyse Risk & Compliance operating costs. The results identify optimisation levers such as run-vs-change spend, vendor mix, and technology vs non-tech allocation to inform restructuring and efficiency initiatives.

Workforce Model Assessment

We review cost, role mix, and location strategy to assess how Risk & Compliance resources are deployed. By comparing headcount and compensation structures to peer data, we highlight opportunities for more scalable, balanced, and cost-effective operating models.

Operational Efficiency Benchmarking

We analyse timeliness, accuracy, and process performance metrics across KYC, AML, Sanctions and Fraud to identify efficiency gaps and opportunities to streamline operations.

The Problem

  • ✔Inconsistent control frameworks and fragmented governance oversight.
  • ✔Limited visibility into effectiveness across KYC, AML, Sanctions, Fraud and Financial Crime processes.
  • ✔Firms are unaware of how they compare to best-in-class and industry standards for R&C performance.
  • ✔Fragmented oversight structures limit accountability and slow decision-making across R&C processes.

Client success stories

Governance Revealed oversight and control gaps across FC processes, enabling the client to enhance governance maturity and clarify ownership.
10% detection uplift potential identified through benchmarking alert-handling performance and model effectiveness and maturity against leading peers.
25% investigation efficiency potential uncovered by analysing maturity gaps in case-handling workflows and escalation processes.
Data & Analytics Discovered fragmented data flows and under-utilised analytics capabilities, helping the client pinpoint where improved integration and automation would accelerate FCC maturity.

Case Studies

Tier-1 European Bank

Findings presented to the global board shaped the institution’s Risk & Compliance strategy for the following year and led to a three-year engagement extension.

Nordic Bank

After reviewing a comprehensive maturity assessment, the bank re-engaged with BCG Expand, citing actionable insights and improved relationship value.

How we can help

Controls & Governance Benchmarking

We benchmark controls, governance, and oversight maturity against peers to measure timeliness, accuracy, and compliance across KYC, AML, and Fraud processes. Our analysis pinpoints performance gaps and provides actionable insights to strengthen governance and risk-mitigation effectiveness.

Effectiveness & Timeliness Assessment

We evaluate the timeliness, accuracy and quality of core R&C processes, including case handling, investigation cycles, and alert management, to surface maturity gaps and prioritise improvements.

Insightful Output

Evaluates each area’s (Fraud, Financial Crime, Compliance, KYC, Risk) maturity across domains: The tool helps banks identify maturity gaps, build capability, and prepare for supervisory expectations. It also serves as a preventive tool – highlighting control weaknesses that may be exploited by financial criminals.

In terms of quality and content BCG Expand’s KYC benchmark was by far the best available on the market.

Global Head of KYC Operations European Bank

The benchmarking finally helped us quantify value in a space where ROI is hard to measure.

Risk Head Nordic Bank

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