'39% of surveyed CCOs say that they have witnessed an increase in misconduct, fraud, acts of bribery among 3rd parties

Dun & Bradstreet, a leading global provider of B2B data, insights and AI-driven platforms, released a survey today on “Turning Compliance Into Competitive Advantage.” The survey conducted in the last quarter of 2020 covers responses from 250 Chief Compliance Officers (CCOs) representing businesses with over INR 5 billion revenue across 9 sectors and seven major cities in India (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad)

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to businesses across the world due to the overnight shift to a remote working model. The survey revealed the challenges and risks faced by CCOs during this time - 67% of CCOs find economic risks to be the most challenging, followed by 46% identifying technological risks as the most challenging, and 33% of CCOs called out political risks as the top challenge for them.

The survey also deep-dived into the trends in misconduct and fraud during the pandemic. As per the survey, 39% of CCOs say that they have witnessed an increase in misconduct, fraud, acts of bribery among 3rd parties and ecosystem partners during the pandemic. 62% of the responding businesses were amending their internal compliance policies with respect to the Work from Home (WFH) model.

Dr Arun Singh, Global Chief Economist, Dun & Bradstreet said, ‘The growing tidal wave of regulations is placing tremendous pressure on businesses, especially those with international operations. As every business is susceptible to misconduct and fraud by its employees or even business partners, it is important to have the right compliance framework. It is even more important to ensure effective enforcement of the guidelines and best practices to avoid financial and reputational damage. According to the Dun & Bradstreet survey, ‘54% of the responding businesses stated that the pandemic had impacted the credit limit of both suppliers and their own business. While businesses have seen a 15% impact on average, the figure was as high as 60% in some cases.’

Avinash Gupta, Managing Director, Dun & Bradstreet India said, “While the pandemic caught everyone by surprise, CCO’s were quick to jump into a crisis mode, ensuring the well-being and safety of employees and helping them with remote working. In addition, they were also tasked with navigating an increasingly complex regulatory environment. While some CCOs resorted to the benefits of technology and a data-driven approach to compliance management, there were still 41% of CCOs who find technology to be a top compliance challenge.

However, companies can only achieve the advantages of a data-inspired approach by partnering with a trusted third-party data provider capable of verifying vast quantities of information acquired through a reliable, transparent data supply chain. According to the survey, Two in five surveyed CCOs who use online tools to vet 3rd parties benefit from a faster vetting process and depth of information provided by those tools.”

Key findings from the survey

· 67% of surveyed CCOs find economic risks as the most challenging in the current environment

· 63% of CCOs expect regulatory compliance to be the most challenging once COVID-19 is over

· 39% of surveyed CCOs say that they have witnessed an increase in misconduct, fraud, acts of bribery among 3rd parties, and ecosystem partners during the pandemic. 62% of the responding businesses were amending their internal compliance policies in line with the Work from Home (WFH) model

· Two in five surveyed CCOs who use online tools to vet 3rd parties benefit from faster vetting process. Another two in five surveyed CCOs who use online tools to vet 3rd parties benefit from the depth of information provided by those tools

· 42% of the surveyed CCOs agree that it is important to know the Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBO) of their business partners. They think this information is vital in protecting their brand reputation and in ensuring they do not deal with illegitimate businesses.