Symplicy and Regmate Partner to Streamline KYC Collection and AML Due Diligence for Law Firms

With Symplicy’s smart form now integrated into Regmate, the AML compliance software built for regulated professions, your clients’ identification data (KYC) and supporting documents flow straight into your compliance file.

The integration cuts down on re-keying data and on the back-and-forth needed to build a KYC file.

From there, you can run your screening, document your risk assessment and, at year-end, complete your Bar’s anti-money laundering questionnaire with confidence, based on reliable data collected the moment you opened the file.

Why is AML compliance such a burden for law firms?

Due diligence obligations exist for good reasons.

But in day-to-day practice, meeting them still relies far too often on emails, scattered attachments, Excel spreadsheets, and Word templates.

In practice, a lawyer subject to AML rules must:

• identify and verify the identity of the client, any authorized representatives, and the beneficial owners;
• assess the risk of each client and each business relationship (individual risk assessment);
• check that the client is not an undetected politically exposed person (PEP) or subject to sanctions or an asset freeze;
• keep proof of this due diligence for the full statutory retention period;
• report to their supervisory authority (the Bar or its President, the Bâtonnier), notably through the annual AML questionnaire.

Each of these steps depends on getting the right information from the client at the right time.

And that’s exactly where things get difficult: checking the data (is the VAT number correct? is the ID card still valid?), chasing the client, missing documents, unreadable copies (blurry photos, for instance), and manually re-entering everything into the compliance tool.

These tasks are time-consuming, add no value and, in reality, can’t be billed.

On top of that, a single data-entry error can weaken the entire file if you’re ever audited.

How does the Symplicy × Regmate integration work?

The idea is simple, and it follows the same approach behind our successful integrations with Kleos and Septeo Lawyer Solutions:

Symplicy streamlines data collection; Regmate structures and tracks your compliance due diligence.

The integration gives firms an additional collection channel that connects directly to their Regmate compliance environment:

1. Your client fills out Symplicy’s smart KYC form, which you can configure and customize to fit your requirements: conditional questions, document uploads, a GDPR consent checkbox, and more.
2. Symplicy structures the data, checks that everything the client entered is complete, and qualifies the request (the engagement the client is entrusting to you) before it reaches you.
3. The data and documents are automatically pushed into Regmate: the client profile and KYC file are created, ready for screening and risk assessment.

The result: no more double entry, no more missing documents, and more time for analysis.

Which KYC documents does the Symplicy form collect for AML purposes?

The form adapts to each client’s profile and only asks for what’s relevant.

The information and documents requested depend on the client’s profile, the engagement, and the settings chosen by the firm.

The list below is for illustration only.

Requests are tailored to the jurisdiction, the engagement, the client’s structure, and the level of risk:

All of this data lands in Regmate already in the right place, with each document attached to the right client profile.

What does the lawyer do in Regmate once the data arrives?

Once Symplicy has populated the KYC file, you have the full power of Regmate at your fingertips.

1. Run screening in one click

Regmate searches Dow Jones databases to check whether your client, its directors, or its beneficial owners appear on a sanctions list, are politically exposed persons (PEPs), or are the subject of adverse media.

Because identities are transferred exactly as provided, with no re-keying, the automated transfer reduces transcription errors in the data used for screening.

2. Document the client risk assessment

Regmate’s risk matrix draws on the answers collected: client type, country, nature of the engagement, and source of funds. You assign a risk level, apply the appropriate due diligence measures (simplified, standard, or enhanced), and keep a time-stamped record of your reasoning.

3. Complete your Bar’s AML questionnaire

Your Bar typically asks you, most often once a year, to report on your AML framework: number of clients, risk profiles, PEPs, high-risk countries, and measures applied.

With Symplicy and Regmate, those figures are already in your system. No more piecing the year back together from your inbox: you answer based on data collected upfront, consistently and in a way you can justify if you’re audited.

4. Stay audit-ready

ID documents, beneficial ownership register extracts, screening results, and risk assessments are centralized and stored in Regmate, on sovereign cloud hosting.

You can pull up proof of any due diligence step in seconds.

What the teams are saying

“Our lawyer clients kept telling us that AML compliance starts with collecting the right information, and that’s where they lose the most time. With Regmate, we’re connecting our form to a compliance tool designed by and for regulated professions. Lawyers now receive a complete KYC file; all that’s left is the analysis.” Adrien Dumonceaux, CEO and co-founder of Symplicy.

“Regmate structures due diligence; Symplicy structures the data collection behind it. By eliminating re-keying, this integration makes screening and risk assessment more reliable and lets lawyers prepare their annual questionnaire without the stress.” Jérôme Lee, CEO of Regmate.

FAQ: KYC and AML for lawyers

What does KYC mean for a lawyer?

KYC (Know Your Customer) covers all the due diligence involved in identifying and verifying the client, any authorized representatives, and the beneficial owners. For lawyers subject to AML regulations, it’s a legal requirement that must be met before entering into a business relationship.

AML/CFT, LBC/FT, LCB-FT: what’s the difference?

There’s no real difference. All of these acronyms refer to anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism. In English, the standard term is AML/CFT. In French-speaking jurisdictions, you’ll see LBC/FT (or BC/FT) in Belgium and Luxembourg, and LCB-FT in France.

When is a lawyer subject to AML legislation?

Lawyers are not subject to AML obligations for everything they do.

They are covered when they assist a client in planning or carrying out certain transactions, or when they act on the client’s behalf in a financial or real estate transaction.

This list comes from the EU directive and is reflected, with some variations, in Belgian, French, and Luxembourg law:

What documents should I request from a client for AML purposes?

For an individual: a valid ID document and information about their occupation and PEP status. For a company: its articles of association, a trade register extract (BCE, Kbis, or RCS), a beneficial ownership register extract (UBO register or RBE), and the identity of its directors. Depending on the risk level, you’ll also need documents showing the source of funds.

What is PEP and sanctions screening?

It means identifying whether the client may be a politically exposed person and looking for potential matches on sanctions lists, so you can determine the appropriate due diligence and measures.

Regmate runs these checks against Dow Jones databases.

How do I prepare for my Bar’s annual AML questionnaire?

By keeping all KYC data, screening results, and risk assessments for each client in one place throughout the year.

With Symplicy and Regmate, this information is collected when the file is opened and stays available when it’s time to answer the questionnaire.

Do I need practice management software to use the integration?

No. The Symplicy × Regmate integration works on its own. It can also complement our integrations with Kleos or Septeo Lawyer Solutions for managing your files.

Setting up an AML procedure at your firm: five steps

An integration doesn’t replace a procedure.

It makes it easier to follow.

Here are the five steps of an anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing procedure tailored to a law firm, along with what the Symplicy × Regmate workflow handles at each stage.

One question should guide you throughout every file:

“Is my client using me to launder money or finance terrorism?”

The right time to ask it: as soon as you receive the client’s KYC form, before entering into a business relationship.

Step 1: Collect information and documents

The goal is twofold: identify the client (and, where applicable, any authorized representatives and beneficial owners) and understand the engagement they’re entrusting to you.

With Symplicy, clients fill out the KYC form themselves and attach their documents.

The form adapts its questions to the client’s profile (individual or legal entity) and won’t let the client submit until every required document is uploaded.

The data and documents are then pushed into Regmate, where the client profile and KYC file are created.

Step 2: Determine whether AML rules apply to this file

Ask yourself two questions:

• Am I assisting my client with a transaction covered by AML/CFT regulations?
• Am I acting on my client’s behalf in a financial or real estate transaction?

If the answer to either question is yes, AML rules apply to this engagement.

The table earlier in this article gives practical examples.

Because the Symplicy form qualifies the engagement as soon as the request comes in, you can settle this question before your first meeting.

Tip: When AML rules apply, put a colored sticker on the paper file or a dedicated tag on the electronic file.

In Regmate, the file could be flagged as covered, replacing the sticker on the paper file.

Step 3: Assess the client’s risk

Building on your firm-wide risk assessment, carry out the client’s individual risk assessment:

• Verify their identity and screen their name, and those of their beneficial owners, against sanctions and politically exposed person lists.
• Check for adverse media.
• Compare the documents you received with public registers (UBO register or RBE), and watch for any inconsistency between what the client tells you and what you find.

In Regmate, screening runs against Dow Jones databases using the identities transmitted by Symplicy, with no re-keying.

The risk matrix then suggests a risk level, which you confirm or adjust, with a time-stamped record of your reasoning.

Step 4: Report a suspicion if necessary

If you have a suspicion, you don’t go directly to the financial intelligence unit: as a lawyer, you report it to the President of the Bar (Bâtonnier), who checks that professional secrecy is respected before passing it on.

The screening results and risk assessment stored in Regmate form the record on which you base your decision whether or not to report.

Step 5: Keep the evidence

Keep the identification data for the client, its authorized representatives, and its beneficial owners, copies of the documents and the results of register searches, as well as records of the transactions carried out.

Regmate centralizes all of this on sovereign cloud hosting, so proof of every due diligence step remains available if your Bar audits you.

Key points to keep in mind

• These five steps are a general framework. They should be adapted to your practice and built into your internal procedures.
• Your Bar provides practical tools: checklists, risk assessment grids, and reporting templates.
• Regular training remains essential.

Legal references

These laws transpose Directive (EU) 2015/849, whose Article 2(1)(3)(b) defines the lawyer activities that fall within the scope of AML rules.

Connect your Symplicy KYC form to Regmate

Stop wasting time copying ID documents and beneficial ownership extracts into your compliance tool: automate this step!

Keep everything in one place to make KYC file management and audit preparation easier.

You can start connecting your Symplicy form to Regmate today.

And you won’t be doing it alone: we’re here to help you configure your KYC form and get the most out of the integration.

Contact our team to learn how to activate it!