Short answer
A financial crime decision is proof-ready when a later reviewer can understand the decision event, evidence lineage, policy or rule context, model/risk signals, reviewer action, approval path, proof gaps and replay context. Proof-readiness is not a compliance guarantee. It is an operational way to see whether the decision can be explained and reconstructed.
What proof-ready means
Proof-ready does not mean perfect, certified or legally sufficient in every context. It means the decision path has enough visible evidence, rationale, approvals and timestamps for a later team to understand what happened and what still needs attention.
The checklist is useful precisely because it can mark evidence as ready, weak or missing. Those gaps are often the most important output.
The checklist
The checklist below should be treated as an operating model for review readiness. It does not replace a firm's policies, procedures, controls or legal obligations.
Ready | Weak | Missing
How source profiles and mapping help
Source profiles describe what evidence a system can expose in read-only mode. Field mapping translates those records into a normalized proof structure.
Read-only certification should make access mode, completeness and proof gaps visible. It should not imply that a live adapter is already certified unless that claim has been separately approved.
Synthetic proof-readiness scorecard
A synthetic scorecard can make the concept tangible while avoiding production claims.
Synthetic example
Synthetic scorecard
A financial crime review has strong evidence lineage and approval context, a weak source-data timestamp and a missing linked policy version. The replay path is available but marked incomplete until the gap is resolved.
- Ready: decision event, evidence, approval.
- Weak: source timestamp.
- Missing: policy-version link.
Sources and editorial basis
This checklist supports governance and audit preparation. It does not certify compliance status or make regulator-readiness claims.
Source references
- FinCEN SAR FAQs - October 2025 - Primary source for SAR documentation clarification.
- FFIEC BSA/AML Manual - Suspicious Activity Reporting - US supervisory reference for SAR program context.
- FATF Recommendations - International standards context; obligations vary by jurisdiction.