EBA Highlights Growing Role of SupTech in AML/CFT Supervision Across the EU

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has released a new report examining the growing role of technology in the supervision of anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), known as supervisory technology or SupTech. The term refers to the use of advanced digital solutions by supervisory authorities to enhance their oversight, analysis, and monitoring of financial institutions.

In the field of AML/CFT, SupTech tools can help identify suspicious activity more effectively, improve the reliability of reporting data, and strengthen risk-based supervision. The latest report from the EBA takes stock of the innovations already underway across the European Union and assesses how these efforts can support the implementation of the bloc’s new AML/CFT framework.

A cornerstone of this framework is the establishment of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Authority (AMLA), which is set to coordinate and oversee AML/CFT supervision at the European level. According to the EBA, the creation of AMLA represents “a unique opportunity to reassess supervisory approaches and to harness the potential of technology to improve oversight.”

To prepare the report, the EBA gathered input from national competent authorities (NCAs) through surveys and, in collaboration with the European Commission’s AMLA Task Force, hosted a workshop dedicated to identifying emerging trends, ongoing challenges, and best practices in the application of SupTech to AML/CFT supervision.

The resulting document presents a comprehensive overview of how SupTech is already being deployed across EU jurisdictions. It points to effective approaches in key areas such as change management, data and technology integration, and supervisory as well as regulatory strategies. Together, these developments could underpin a more risk-based, data-driven, and scalable supervisory model once the new AML/CFT framework is fully in place.

While the use of SupTech tools in AML/CFT remains relatively new, the report underlines that progress is already visible. Nearly half of the identified projects—47 per cent—are in production, with another 38 per cent still in development and 15 per cent at the exploratory stage. NCAs that have already adopted such tools reported tangible benefits, including higher data quality, stronger collaboration between supervisory bodies, and more efficient identification of risks within financial systems.

Despite these advances, authorities continue to face significant hurdles. The EBA noted that limited resources, unresolved legal questions, and data governance concerns remain barriers to broader adoption of technological solutions in supervisory practice.

The EBA stated that it intends to continue providing support to both NCAs and the future AMLA to strengthen their use of technology and encourage innovation in AML/CFT supervision across the Union. The report also reflects the authority’s obligations under its Founding Regulation. Article 29 of that regulation requires the EBA “to play an active role in building a common Union supervisory culture and in ensuring consistent supervisory practices.” Meanwhile, Article 31 obliges it “to promote supervisory convergence and facilitate the entry into the market of actors or products that rely on technological innovation, particularly through the exchange of information and best practices.”

Ultimately, the EBA stressed that the purpose of this mandate is to help shape “a common European approach to technological innovation in financial supervision,” underscoring the growing importance of SupTech in safeguarding the financial system against money laundering and terrorist financing threats.

By fLEXI tEAM