A Politically Exposed Person, or PEP, is someone who holds, or has recently held, a prominent public role. Examples include: Heads of state Ministers Members of parliament Ambassadors Senior military officials Judges of higher courts Executives of state-owned enterprises PEP screening may also include close family members and known associates. In many jurisdictions, PEP status remains relevant for at least 12 months after leaving office.

Automate AML, Sanctions and PEP Screening

Comply with AML, KYC, CDD, EDD and sanctions regulations without slowing down your customer journey or the growth of your business.

Bluem screens individuals and companies against global sanctions lists, PEP lists, criminal watchlists, law enforcement records and other risk intelligence sources. Screening is not a one-time onboarding step. Customers can become sanctioned, politically exposed or high-risk at any moment. Bluem helps you detect those changes in real time and stay compliant throughout the full customer lifecycle.

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Flexible AML Screening

Two APIs.
Two Compliance Use Cases.

Choose instant, single-subject screening with the AML API or continuous portfolio-wide monitoring with the Monitor API.

AML API For Real-Time
Screening Of One Subject

For onboarding, KYC reviews, transaction checks and individual investigations. The AML API follows a direct request/response model. You send a screening request for one person or company, and Bluem immediately returns the result.

You Send

Name

Date of birth, if available

Nationality or country

Monitor API for Continuous Monitoring of your Customer

For ongoing customer lifecycle screening. With the Monitor API, you upload your active customer portfolio to Bluem. We continuously monitor those customers against the datasets you select, at the frequency your business requires.

Which datasets to monitor

Sanctions

PEPs

Criminal watchlists

Other risk datasets

How often datasets are checked:

Weekly

Monthly

Quarterly

According to your own risk

Our USP

Fewer False Positives

Most AML providers return every possible match, including partial matches. Bluem focuses on returning the right match.

Bluem adds an intelligent matching layer on top of the source data. Our fuzzy logic and machine-learning-assisted matching algorithm filters obvious mismatches before they reach your team.

Less Manual Review

Faster Onboarding

Lower Compliance Costs

Name Signals

• Full name similarity

• Aliases and alternative spellings

• Abbreviations and initials

Identity Context

• Country and nationality data

• Date of birth

• Multi-factor identity correlation

Language & Structure

• Patronymic naming structures

• Noise words and synonyms

• Common typos

Global Coverage

Bluem Screens Against
Thousands Of International Sources

Coverage spans more than 150 countries and territories. Bluem supports organisations in financial services, banking, fintech, crypto, insurance, real estate, iGaming, corporate intelligence and professional services.

Global Sanctions Authorities

National Sanctions Lists

International And Domestic PEP Lists

Criminal and law enforcement sources

Regulatory Enforcement Actions

Judicial Records

World map of Bluem AML screening coverage

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FAQ

Politically
Exposed Persons

Understand PEP risks, due diligence requirements, and when enhanced monitoring is needed.

What is a PEP?

A Politically Exposed Person, or PEP, is someone who holds, or has recently held, a prominent public role.

Examples include:

Heads of state
Ministers
Members of parliament
Ambassadors
Senior military officials
Judges of higher courts
Executives of state-owned enterprises

PEP screening may also include close family members and known associates.
In many jurisdictions, PEP status remains relevant for at least 12 months after leaving office.

Can I accept a PEP as a customer?

Yes. Being a PEP does not mean a customer is involved in wrongdoing. Under AML rules such as the EU Anti-Money Laundering Directives and the Dutch Wwft, you can accept a PEP as a customer, provided you apply enhanced customer due diligence and senior management approves the relationship before it starts.

What extra measures should I take for a PEP?

Standard due diligence is not enough for a PEP. Typical enhanced measures include:

Senior management approval to start or continue the relationship
Establishing the source of wealth and the source of funds
Enhanced ongoing monitoring of the relationship and its transactions
Screening close family members and known close associates

When should I refuse or end a relationship with a PEP?

Consider refusing or ending the relationship when you cannot complete enhanced due diligence, when the source of wealth or funds cannot be explained, or when monitoring reveals sanctions matches, adverse media or activity that does not fit the customer profile. If there are indications of money laundering, report an unusual transaction to the competent authority, such as FIU-Nederland in the Netherlands.

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Stay Compliant. Reduce Noise. Focus on Real Risk.

Screen customers instantly with the AML API. Monitor your full active customer database continuously with the Monitor API. Detect risk changes the moment they matter.

Bluem helps compliance teams move faster, reduce false positives and focus on decisions that truly matter.

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Compliance officer reviewing a PEP screening result in Bluem on a tablet