The challenge
An international bank faced a seemingly simple question that proved far more complex in practice. How can we simplify large volumes of policy documentation while automating risk policy management?
As a global financial institution, the bank deals with a wide range of risks, including credit, market, operational, compliance and reputational risks. Managing these effectively requires clear, up-to-date policies that guide decision-making across the organisation.
In reality, however, risk policies had become increasingly complex and difficult to navigate. Documents were hard to access, and their interpretation sometimes varied across teams or regions. As a result, consistency in decision-making came under pressure, introducing additional risk.
The central risk team set out to simplify the policy landscape and make it easier to use. The goal was to digitalise policies and make them more intuitive, so employees worldwide could navigate rules and guidelines with greater ease.
The approach
Working closely with the bank, KPMG started by mapping the full global policy landscape. This created a clear view of how risk policies were structured and where the main bottlenecks and improvement opportunities lay.
Artificial Intelligence was then used to structure and digitalise the policy documentation. AI broke documents down into core components such as policy statements, business rules and the data attributes needed to apply those rules in practice.
This made policy information easier to structure and navigate. At the same time, the expertise of risk professionals remained essential. Through a human-in-the-loop approach, experts reviewed, refined and enriched the AI output. This not only accelerated the process, but also ensured the quality and consistency of the policies.
The result
The bank now has a more efficient and easier way to manage and apply its risk policies.
Professionals have quicker access to relevant and up-to-date information, enabling better decision-making. More consistent application of policy rules creates greater clarity across the organisation and reduces the risk of differing interpretations.
Regulatory changes and internal updates can now be implemented more quickly. The central risk team also has better visibility into how policies are applied across the organisation.
By simplifying and digitalising its risk policy framework, the bank has built a scalable and future-ready foundation.
The team that made the difference
A multidisciplinary team from KPMG Netherlands supported the bank in analysing, structuring and digitalising its risk policies. By combining expertise in AI and data with deep knowledge of financial regulation and risk management, they developed a solution that strengthens both governance and decision-making.
