Voice Technology has a major role to play in the regulations of the finance industry. Nigel Cannings shares his insights on the technology being used in the financial and insurance industry.
1. How can voice technology help answer some of the financial industry’s biggest problems?
Summary: Voice technology can help solve some of the biggest problems in the financial and insurance industries, saving companies billions of dollars in non-compliance fines
Voice technology is cementing itself at the core of communications in both the financial sector and beyond, with phone and video calling providing businesses with a plethora of data. However, with these developments comes new regulatory guidelines and a need to adapt our current technological capabilities to meet them. The development of regulatory technology (RegTech) and new speech analysis software is providing finance companies with the resources to equip themselves to handle these changes.
One of the most prominent issues in the finance industry is regulatory compliance, with billions of dollars being fined worldwide for non-compliance. These regulations are essential to the provision of a safe, secure environment for customers, and for maintaining appropriate business practices.
The process of monitoring regulatory adherence can be long and complex. However, the introduction of updated voice technology can provide companies with solutions to some of the most impactful and important compliance issues. Regulatory Technology (RegTech) and the contributing voice technology has become crucial to meeting requirements and complying with regulations surrounding the storage and application of voice data.
2. What is RegTech and how does it assist with regulatory compliance?
RegTech is an umbrella term used to describe any technology that is designed to assist businesses in remaining compliant with their regulatory obligations and standards. These technologies involve the gathering and analysis of data, automation, and risk management – including important tasks such as the implementation of anti-fraud measures. Modern technological developments are allowing for the deeper analysis of data, providing new insights through processes such as machine learning. This assists businesses in ensuring compliance, while also improving the efficiency with which data is processed and utilised. RegTech not only helps enhance company compliance but can also be effectively applied to cost reduction within effective governance and monitoring practices.
3. What is the importance of voice data in finance?
Voice-based data is incredibly valuable but simultaneously difficult to manage and process without the correct technology. Historically, it has been considered expensive to store, challenging to index, and virtually impossible to analyse in enough detail to provide significant benefits to a business. As the industry continues to conduct more frequent video and audio communications, technology that previously targeted IM and email traffic through text-based analysis will fall behind. However, the introduction of new AI technology, audio-based data monitoring, and advanced audio analysis will bring significant benefits to the monitoring of compliance and workflow. The impactful nature of voice data will likely continue its current trajectory, increasing in prominence, and becoming essential to compliance monitoring and effective record keeping. As a result, investment in modern speech technology is quickly becoming a requirement for finance companies.
4. How can modern speech technology benefit the finance industry?
The progress of modern speech technology has been rapid, with the development of AI systems contributing significantly to the advancement of what is possible to achieve with voice data. Finance companies must take the best possible approach to the analysis of voice data, resulting in the best regulatory compliance.
It is vital that finance companies do not attempt to cut corners for the sake of cost, risking non-compliance through inaccurate data collection and storage. Although plugging speech-to-text technology into voice data to feed translated information through existing text-orientated analysis may appear to be a cost-effective solution to new regulations, it is an approach that raises several significant issues. Voice data is often complex, involving industry jargon, colloquial speech features, and overtalk. The accuracy of speech-to-text technology dips significantly with the influence of these elements.
In contrast, AI-based voice data analysis holds the potential for more precise analysis without the accuracy and security risks associated with forcing data through multiple processes that are not designed for audio input. Companies need to examine their roadmap for the future, considering the potential that AI holds for advanced voice analysis, emotion and sentiment analysis, the registering of biometric voiceprints, anti-fraud intelligence, and machine learning systems. Audio surveillance impact multiple areas of business and cannot be compromised by inadequate processes.
Companies must recognise that compliance monitoring and regulations are unlikely to be relaxed. Compliance tools must have the ability to adapt and evolve during unexpected challenges (as demonstrated by the Covid-19 pandemic) and should have adequate measures to protect customers and provide secure data-gathering, even in the most uncertain of environments. Few sectors are advancing as rapidly as AI and speech recognition – it will benefit the finance industry to invest in these developments now rather than later.
