Conducting PEPs, Sanctions, and Adverse Media Checks

Summary

This article explains how to initiate a PEPs (Politically Exposed Persons), Sanctions, and Adverse Media check on a staff member or client, review potential database matches, and record your final compliance determination.

When to Use This

Use this process when you are onboarding a new staff member or client and need to verify their background against politically exposed persons lists, sanctions lists, and adverse media reports. Properly resolving matches helps mitigate financial and reputational risks, ensuring compliance alignment before finalising onboarding.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Locate the individual you want to check (either a staff member or a client) in the Compliance Centre.
2. Under the verification section, check the box next to "PEPs, sanctions and Adverse media".
3. Click the Order button located on the right side of the row.
4. In the pop-up window, confirm the details of the person you are searching.
5. Click Confirm to proceed.
6. The status will change to IN PROGRESS while the system performs the search.
7. Click Review next to the check indicator to see the list of potential search matches (a banner will indicate how many profiles were found).
8. Select the checkboxes next to the names of the profiles that present matching criteria, then click the Request profiles button.
9. Once the request is processed, the status will update to To Review (or display an Action pending label on the compliance dashboard). Click the Review link to inspect the returned profile details.
10. Assess the detailed profile information, including risk categories (such as PEP levels or RCA - Relatives and Close Associates), gender, citizenship, residency, jurisdictions, associated organisations, confidence scores powered by the background database, and any documented adverse media.
11. Click the status dropdown menu (defaulted to To review) and classify the profile as either Is a match or Not a match. Alternatively, if none of the registry profiles match your actual client, scroll to the bottom of the page and click No matches. If a true match is identified, follow your firm's escalation policy.
12. Repeat the evaluation for any additional flagged profiles until the status updates to Completed. Confirm that the status indicates "No matches" if none were found.

Common Questions

• Who can I run a PEPs check on? You can run this check on either a staff member or a client.
• What happens after I confirm the order? The system will process the search, and the status will update to show whether any profile matches were found.
• What is a PEP check? A PEP check identifies whether a customer holds (or has held) a prominent public position or is closely related to someone who has.
• What is a Sanction check? A Sanctions check verifies whether a person or business appears on official government or international sanctions lists (for example - UN or DFAT)
• What is a Adverse Media check? An Adverse Media check looks for negative news or public information about a person or business.

Troubleshooting Tips

• Incorrect details in the confirmation window: If the mobile number or other details are incorrect, update them in the pop-up before clicking confirm.
• Search taking a long time: The search may take a few moments to return results. Wait for the status to change from "IN PROGRESS" to see the outcome.