Accuity announced today that it has acquired Safe Banking Systems (SBS).

SBS is a specialist provider of innovative Know Your Customer due diligence and anti-money laundering solutions that enable financial institutions to identify, assess and manage risk across the enterprise.

SBS’s solutions perform advanced false positive reduction and risk assessment in the account screening process across a number of sectors, including high volume banks and non-bank financial institutions, bringing greater intelligence for entity resolution to clients worldwide.

Accuity, part of RELX Group, is a leading provider of innovative solutions for payments and compliance professionals, offering comprehensive data and software that manage risk and compliance, and flexible tools that optimise payments pathways through its Fircosoft, Bankers Almanac and NRS brands.

SBS is already a long-standing partner of Accuity’s Fircosoft business, leveraging the Fircosoft filter in its solutions. Accuity and SBS share many mutual customers, which benefit from their complementary offerings. This acquisition will allow Accuity to strengthen these benefits to clients as they face an evolving, complex and costly regulatory environment, providing Accuity with an enhanced and leading account screening solution, and complementing its transaction and trade screening offerings.

Hugh M. Jones IV, Accuity President & CEO, said: “SBS has an impressive track record of delivering award-winning technology and deep subject matter expertise, enabling clients to truly take a risk-based approach that advances the field far beyond traditional matching technologies. The business shares Accuity’s ambition to be a trusted partner to clients, protecting their reputations and transforming the way they manage risk. We look forward to welcoming the SBS team and collaborating to strengthen our Fircosoft solutions.”

David Schiffer, CEO, Safe Banking Systems, said: “Accuity is the natural home for SBS and affords us the opportunity to build on our existing partnership and success to date, grow our investments in our business, and expand globally.  Bringing our expertise and teams together will enable us to accelerate the development of innovative approaches to managing risk through advanced entity resolution and reducing false positives.”

SBS has approximately 50 employees and is based in Mineola, New York.

Evercore served as financial advisor to SBS and Lowenstein Sander LLP served as legal counsel to SBS.