Survey: Deloitte and Sinpex Reveal Major Readiness Gaps Ahead of EU AML Package

Deloitte and Sinpex today announced the results of their joint Europe-wide survey on the implementation readiness of the new EU Anti-Money Laundering Package (EU AML Package), highlighting significant gaps in preparedness, digitalization, and resources across both financial and non-financial sectors. The detailed findings will be presented in a live webinar on November 27. The study, based on responses from 117 organizations across Europe, shows that companies are still at the beginning of a profound transformation. Nearly half of all respondents (47%) report being only slightly familiar or not at all familiar with the new requirements — despite the binding implementation deadline of July 10, 2027.

Key findings from the survey include:

• Knowledge Gap: Almost half (47%) of companies have only basic or no familiarity with the new AML requirements. Non-financial companies lag particularly far behind, with more than 80% reporting low awareness.
• Slow Implementation: Only 29% have begun implementing an AML strategy, and 18% have not yet started planning — less than two years before the mandate.
• Rising Workload: One in five firms expects more than 70 hours of AML work per month, indicating AML is becoming a continuous operational burden.
• Significant Staffing & IT Gaps: 56% cite staffing shortages, and 55% cite IT system limitations as their biggest obstacles.
• High Costs for SMEs: Smaller companies face disproportionately high compliance costs, spending around 5% of annual revenue on AML implementation.
• Lack of Digitalization: 47% still operate without digital AML/KYC/KYB/UBO solutions, and automation remains fragmented — especially in non-financial sectors.
• Openness to Automation: 51% are open to greater automation, with much higher acceptance in the financial sector (62%).

A system under strain — and a market ready for modernization

The findings reveal two parallel realities:

• Financial institutions show higher maturity and stronger IT integration but face rising technological demands.
• Non-financial companies are significantly behind on awareness, planning, and automation — risking last-minute pressure and bottlenecks as 2027 approaches.

"The results show a clear picture: Europe is entering a new era of AML compliance, but many organizations are not yet prepared for the scale of change ahead. The combination of regulatory pressure, manual workloads, and IT gaps creates a perfect storm for compliance teams. Automation and targeted expert support will be essential to bridge these gaps — not only to stay compliant, but to build scalable, future-proof processes." — Dr. Camillo Werdich, CEO & Founder of Sinpex "The EU AML Package marks one of the most substantial regulatory shifts of the last decade, and the majority of organizations are not yet prepared. But this is also a unique opportunity to modernize compliance architectures, strengthen data quality, and increase efficiency through digitalization. Companies that embrace this moment proactively will not only reduce risk but also build resilient, scalable processes for the future." — Niko Ihle, Director Anti-Financial Crime, Deloitte