Does sanctions screening slow down payments?

No — when integrated correctly, sanctions screening adds negligible latency. SanctionsAI's API responds in under 100ms, which is imperceptible in any payment flow. The screening happens before the payment is signed, so there is no impact on blockchain confirmation times.

Latency breakdown

A typical screening call takes 50-90ms (network + processing). This is faster than most database queries and dramatically faster than blockchain confirmation (which can take seconds to minutes). For AI agents processing payments autonomously, the screening step is the fastest part of the pipeline.

Optimization tips

For high-frequency agents, cache screening results for repeat counterparties (with a short TTL). SanctionsAI's MCP server handles this automatically. The free tier is rate-limited to 5 checks/day; paid tiers remove the limit.