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Sydney, Australia: Access today announced their strategic partnership with FrankieOne, embedding the identity verification and AML/CTF compliance infrastructure directly into EngageAML – the AML/CTF solution developed by Access for Australian accountants ahead of the July 1 Tranche 2 deadline.
From 1 July 2026, reforms will bring approximately 80,000 new entities under the Anti Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing regime, joining around 15,000 already regulated businesses. For accounting practices, this represents the most significant compliance transformation since GST was introduced in 2000.
Firms that have not yet enrolled with AUSTRAC - which opened enrolment in late 2025 - are already behind. Non-enrolment carries a civil penalty of 60 penalty units per day for body corporates: $18,780 per day under current indexation, rising further from 1 July. Serious or willful non-compliance carries a maximum civil penalty of $31.3 million.
“This is not a basic documentation exercise. Before 1 July, every practice providing designated services must have multiple measures in place, and all staff trained in how to comply. The firms that treated GST as a ‘we’ll figure it out’ problem were the ones scrambling in July 2000. History is about to repeat for anyone not moving now.” David Boyar FCA (The Access Group).
Why Access has partnered with FrankieOne
FrankieOne is a leading RegTech platform that orchestrates identity verification, KYC/AML compliance and fraud prevention through a single API. Its orchestration layer connects more than 350 verification, screening and monitoring data sources, delivering best-of-breed coverage without vendor lock-in for regulated businesses across financial services, fintech and emerging sectors globally.
Through the partnership, EngageAML now draws on FrankieOne’s infrastructure for identity verification, Know Your Customer (KYC), Know Your Business (KYB), Politically Exposed Person (PEP) and sanctions screening, adverse media monitoring, and ongoing customer due diligence.
EngageAML customers also gain access to FrankieOne’s ecosystem of compliance and fraud specialists – including advisory partners across AML, KYB intelligence, and document fraud detection.
"Australia's AML/CTF reforms are about to reshape how accounting practices engage every client. By embedding FrankieOne's infrastructure directly into EngageAML, Access is giving firms bank-grade identity verification, screening and ongoing monitoring inside the workflow they already use. These firms are being held to the same standard as banks, so the technology should match,” Simon Costello, Co-Founder and CEO, FrankieOne.
What this delivers for accounting practices
- Identity and business verification across 350+ data sources via a single integration – covering KYC, KYB, ultimate beneficial ownership analysis, and OCR and Biometrics to identify the person back to a document, at the depth the client risk rating requires.
- Continuous monitoring against the DFAT Consolidated List, comprehensive global screening across sanctions, watchlists, and PEP (Politically Exposed Persons) data, and adverse media – daily, timestamped, and audit trailed – replacing the manual searches many small practices currently rely on.
- Workflow enforcement that follows the legislated sequence – designated services confirmation, KYB, CDD risk rating, screening, KYC at the correct depth, partner approval, and a TASA compliant engagement letter.
- An auditable record that is time and date stamped in the event AUSTRAC requests details on how obligations were met.
- Compliance workflows configurable to your practice and to each client’s risk profile – built to meet AUSTRAC’s expectation of a genuinely risk based program, rather than a one size fits all checklist.
Engagement letters & AML, together – the most complete offering in market
Tranche 2 introduces two parallel obligations that, until now, accounting firms have managed with separate tools and separate processes. Engagement letters must cite client identification when designated services are being delivered. And those same designated services now require Know Your Customer verification before work can begin.
Two intersecting rules, neither well understood, and both legally required from 1 July.
Access has brought both into a single workflow. EngageAML now combines the powerful ChangeGPS engagement letter software with FrankieOne’s bank grade KYC/AML, KYB and ongoing monitoring – in one place, with one audit trail.
It’s the most complete offering on the market and, deliberately, a premium one: more than monitoring and checks, it is the full client engagement and compliance lifecycle, end to end.
Built for accounting firms, not adapted for them
EngageAML was built for the Australian accounting profession from day one – not adapted from a financial services platform. It was co designed with practitioners, so the workflows match how firms already engage clients, document services, and manage risk.
The intent is straightforward: accountants should be focused on their clients, not on building a compliance program from the ground up while a deadline closes in.
“The partner role in a small firm only works if technology does most of the heavy lifting. Flagging risk, prompting reviews, maintaining records, generating reports – that is what the platform does. The partner makes the judgement calls. By embedding FrankieOne’s bank grade infrastructure into EngageAML, every practice – from sole practitioners to the largest firms – has a clear, guided path to 1 July.” David Boyar FCA, The Access Group
Immediate actions practices should take
- Enrol with AUSTRAC immediately if not already done
- Appoint a designated AML/CTF Compliance Officer
- Commission or purchase an AML/CTF risk assessment
- Begin drafting your written AML/CTF Program
- Audit your client base for designated service obligations.
- Implement a CDD workflow before 1 July — manual or technology-assisted
The Access Group’s EngageAML is available now. Practices interested in a demonstration can register at www.theaccessgroup.com/en-au/campaigns/accounting-practices/engageaml
ABOUT ENGAGEAML
EngageAML by The Access Group is a purpose-built AML/CTF compliance platform for Australian accounting practices. It automates identity verification, risk assessment, PEP and sanctions screening, and ongoing client monitoring within existing practice workflows. Available now, ahead of the 1 July 2026 deadline.
ABOUT THE ACCESS GROUP
The Access Group is a leading provider of business management software to the accounting profession in Australia and New Zealand. Its suite of practice management, workflow, and compliance tools is used by thousands of accounting firms nationally. EngageAML is available now at theaccessgroup.com/en-au/campaigns/accounting-practices/engageaml/
ABOUT FRANKIEONE
FrankieOne is a global identity and fraud orchestration platform that helps businesses verify customers, prevent financial crime, and meet regulatory obligations with confidence. Through a single API and configurable workflows, FrankieOne supports KYC, KYB, AML, fraud, and compliance checks across the customer lifecycle. FrankieOne connects to more than 350 identity, fraud, and compliance data sources globally, enabling organisations to select best-of-breed providers suited to their regulatory and risk requirements. Founded in Australia, FrankieOne operates across more than 180 countries and works with leading banks and fintechs including CBA, Westpac, Shopify, and Afterpay.