Strong digital infrastructure

Since 2018, the Hessian Government, key players in the industry, and regulators have successfully initiated a Financial Big Data Cluster (FBDC). It consists of two projects funded by the German federal government, safeFBDC and EuroDaT, which aim to build an infrastructure for the secure exchange of data for the financial sector. This project, which is part of the Gaia-X initiative, is unmatched in Europe. The platform will integrate the previously unconnected and fragmented financial data of companies, authorities and research institutions in a decentralised data trustee and will be optimised for the development of AI applications and systems.

Money laundering prevention and detection is one potential application of the project. There is consensus among AML experts that money laundering prevention will need to focus on innovative technological developments in the future.

Extensive expertise in AI and cybersecurity

The state of Hesse offers an excellent ecosystem for AI developments with initiatives like the Hessian Centre for Artificial Intelligence driving research excellence, education and practice in AI. The Centre Responsible Digitality (ZEVEDI), which is a research and competence network, is another example.

The Frankfurt region is also one of the world’s leading locations for cybersecurity research, which plays an important role in AML. Projects like ATHENE, the largest research centre for cybersecurity in Europe, are based in the region. The activities of the Digital Hub Cybersecurity in Darmstadt, just 20 minutes from Frankfurt, build on these local strengths and bring together know-how from the Fraunhofer Society, the Technical University of Darmstadt, Goethe University Frankfurt and Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences. Furthermore, the Data Protection Research Institute at Goethe University Frankfurt is engaged in leading research and consulting in the fields of data privacy and IT security. Initiatives like the CyberSec4Europe project are coordinated from here.

Research and knowledge hub

The Frankfurt Rhine-Main region offers an attractive research and knowledge hub with a talent pool of 250,000 students and more than 40 research institutions and universities. The strategic alliance of the Rhine-Main universities alone, consisting of Goethe University Frankfurt, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and the Technical University of Darmstadt, have 1,460 professors and offer 630 study programmes. They are also home to 25 non-university research institutions, including independent institutes of renowned scientific societies (the Max Planck Society, the Helmholtz Association, the Fraunhofer Society and the Leibniz Association). The Goethe University Frankfurt is home to a number of outstanding research institutions that focus on interdisciplinary research into European financial markets, such as the House of Finance or the Centre for Financial Studies. The Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE (Sustainable Architecture for Finance in Europe), another internationally renowned and well-connected research centre, is also part of the research and knowledge hub. Other research institutions include the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, with its Frankfurt School Blockchain Center (FSBC), and the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences. Just an hour away is the internationally renowned Heidelberg University, which was founded in 1386.

Rhine-Main region: home to 250,000 students and more than 40 research institutions and universities

Frankfurt’s Green City process

Frankfurt is a truly green city. Its green belt covers around 8,000 hectares of urban area and stretches for 70 km around the city. Green spaces can be found within a radius of just 300 metres in 80 % of the city’s area, 15.5 % of the city is forested and almost half of the city’s area is classified as a nature conservation area.

AMLA and its staff will also discover that Frankfurt is on a path towards becoming a sustainable city. As part of a holistic Green City process, Frankfurt has committed itself to sustainable urban development. This includes the ongoing expansion of the public transport network, the re-naturalisation of the Nidda river and the use of former office buildings to create living space. The city promotes a balance between economic, ecological, social and cultural needs that cannot be achieved at the expense of third parties or future generations.

Availability of sustainable office space

With over 260 buildings that are certified as green buildings or registered for certification, Frankfurt is by far the German capital of green buildings. Green buildings use resources such as energy, water, and materials efficiently and also reduce harmful effects on health and the environment. The buildings are mainly located in the city centre, in the central banking district and in the conveniently located airport area. A flagship project is also being implemented in Frankfurt’s new Europaviertel urban district, the whole of which is certified as sustainable. The timber hybrid office building “Timber Pioneer”, which is due to be completed in Frankfurt in 2024, will set new standards. AMLA will find a plentiful supply of sustainable real estate in Frankfurt.

Since Frankfurt is the German capital of green buildings, AMLA will find a plentiful supply of sustainable real estate