Hawk Earns Strong Performer Title in 2025 Forrester Wave™ for AML Solutions, Solidifying Its Position as a Next-Gen Leader in Financial Crime Prevention
Hawk, a fast-rising innovator in the realm of AI-driven financial crime prevention, has achieved a significant milestone in its growth journey. The company was named a Strong Performer in the latest edition of “The Forrester Wave™: Anti-Money-Laundering Solutions, Q2 2025.” This is the first time Hawk has appeared in Forrester’s prestigious AML report, making its debut recognition all the more notable.
The report, published by global research and advisory firm Forrester, evaluated leading technology providers in the AML space based on a comprehensive set of 26 evaluation criteria. These included the scope and sophistication of each solution’s detection capabilities, AI and machine learning (ML) functionalities, customer feedback, regulatory alignment, product strategy, and market presence. Hawk’s inclusion and Strong Performer ranking signal its growing influence in a segment dominated by more established players.
“For us to achieve a Strong Performer position in our very first appearance in the report is testament to the quality of our technology, the breadth of our solution, and the strength of our strategy,” said Wolfgang Berner, Chief Product Officer at Hawk. “This recognition underscores our commitment to advancing AML innovation and providing our customers with the highest possible standards of performance, transparency, and support.”
AI-Native From the Ground Up
Unlike legacy AML providers that have layered AI onto aging infrastructures, Hawk was built from the ground up as an AI-native platform. At the core of Hawk’s offering is explainable AI (XAI), which not only powers its real-time monitoring and detection tools but also enhances transparency, interpretability, and regulatory trust.
Hawk’s technology is designed to meet one of the most persistent challenges in modern compliance: how to increase detection rates without overwhelming compliance teams with false positives. The answer lies in Hawk’s intelligent orchestration layer, which allows financial institutions to automate complex workflows, detect anomalous patterns at scale, and gain actionable insights in a fraction of the time required by conventional rule-based systems.
According to Berner, Hawk’s edge lies not only in its advanced data science but in the company’s relentless pursuit of real-world applicability: “From the start, we knew that explainable AI was a game-changer for how financial institutions approach AML. We built a platform that dramatically increases efficiency, improves risk coverage, and identifies more financial crime—all with built-in explainability and model governance that sets us apart.”
Recognition from Forrester—and from the Market
In the Forrester Wave report, Hawk’s innovative approach was clearly acknowledged. The report states plainly: “Hawk’s innovation is ahead of the competition.” The platform received especially strong feedback in key categories such as customer satisfaction, support for transaction types, and the ethical conduct of its operations.
As part of the research process, Forrester conducted extensive customer interviews, collecting qualitative feedback from financial institutions that rely on Hawk’s solutions. The verdict was overwhelmingly positive. “Customers unanimously said the vendor fulfills its promises, is competent, delivers consistent quality, and acts ethically,” Forrester’s analysts wrote.
Hawk also received the highest possible score in the “Support for Transaction Types” category—an increasingly critical criterion as the payments ecosystem grows more complex and diversified. With financial institutions managing a wide variety of transaction types—ranging from wire transfers and card payments to crypto movements and embedded finance transactions—AML tools must adapt accordingly. Hawk’s ability to offer advanced risk scoring and adaptive ML models across these transaction formats is proving to be a key differentiator.
“Vendors like to say that ‘a payment is a payment,’ as long as the AML solution captures the right attributes,” the report noted. “But customer organizations tell Forrester that they need AML solutions that help with risk-scoring rules and ML models for various types of payments.”
Meeting the Growing Threat of Financial Crime
As the financial services sector faces increasingly complex threats—from fraud rings and money laundering networks to regulatory scrutiny—Hawk’s solution comes at a critical time. Global money laundering is estimated to exceed $2 trillion annually, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. With regulators tightening the screws and threat actors growing more sophisticated, the pressure is mounting on banks, payment processors, and fintech firms to modernize their AML infrastructure.
Hawk’s AI-first approach not only streamlines compliance but also empowers institutions to get ahead of emerging risks. The company’s models can adapt in real time, enabling dynamic risk scoring based on changing transaction patterns, customer behavior, and contextual data. At the same time, explainable AI ensures that institutions can defend every decision in front of regulators and auditors—a necessity in a sector where model transparency is not optional.
“Hawk has been able to push boundaries in AML in a way that balances cutting-edge innovation with the needs of financial institutions and regulators,” said Berner. “This is just the beginning—we’re excited to continue leading in innovation and to apply technology in creative new ways to deliver even greater value to our customers.”
A Rapidly Growing Footprint
Although a relative newcomer to the AML technology market, Hawk has quickly built an impressive roster of clients, including banks, payment processors, digital asset platforms, and challenger fintechs. The platform’s cloud-native design, modular architecture, and API-first implementation have made it especially appealing to agile organizations looking for fast deployment and scalability.
Hawk’s product portfolio includes modules for transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, PEP and adverse media checks, fraud prevention, customer risk rating, and behavioral analytics. Its machine learning models are continuously updated with new data, and clients are provided with robust dashboards for case management, reporting, and audit trails.
Beyond AML, Hawk is expanding into adjacent areas of financial crime risk and compliance, including Know Your Customer (KYC), fraud detection, and sanctions intelligence. This broader suite makes Hawk not just a point solution but a comprehensive financial crime risk platform.
Looking Ahead
With the Forrester Wave recognition now under its belt, Hawk is poised to accelerate its growth even further. The company continues to invest heavily in research and development, hiring top talent in data science, regulatory affairs, and machine learning. Strategic partnerships with core banking providers, cloud platforms, and regtech ecosystems are also helping to extend its reach.
The message from Forrester’s recognition is clear: Hawk is no longer a promising upstart—it is a proven innovator with the potential to shape the future of AML technology.
To learn more about Hawk’s anti-money laundering capabilities, or to access a complimentary copy of The Forrester Wave™: Anti-Money-Laundering Solutions, Q2 2025 report, visit Hawk’s website.
