Experience

Compliance Services Team Leader | International Law Firm | 2023 - Present

• The team leader of the Regulatory Monitoring & Investigations Team whose main functions include; reviewing compliance processes, internal ongoing monitoring and periodic review, leading regulatory reviews and inspections, conducting investigations in relation to overnight screening & potential sanction hits, producing board reports & horizon scanning for the jurisdictions the firm operates in & providing onboarding, compliance & investor services to clients of the firm.
• Senior participant in completing yearly regulatory AML surveys for the jurisdictions the firm operates in, answering queries from relevant regulators and meeting with regulators during regulatory inspections. Acting as a point of escalation for the team, which includes reviewing high-risk reports, escalations & iSARs in relation to financial crime risk, reputational risk and sanctions risk amongst other risks that may be found within the team's reviews whilst also conducting quality control checks to confirm all
  standards have been met.
• Conducting general management duties involving the regulatory monitoring & investigations team such as leading the day-to-day activities of the team, conducting training workshops, holding performance reviews and preparing management reporting using business intelligence tools such as Power Automate and Power BI.
• Acting as a senior member of a compliance change and delivery project that the firm is currently undertaking in relation to the technology used within the department. The aim of the project is to enhance Intapp & other workflow tools with the use of smart forms, creating automation through artificial intelligence (AI) & the creation of a risk-scoring matrix amongst other methods and thus improve efficiency & productivity within the department.

Senior Compliance Services Analyst | International Law Firm | 2022 - 2023

• Senior member of the ongoing monitoring & periodic review team that conducts client due diligence (CDD) & enhanced due diligence (EDD) on entities/individuals on a global scale. However, with a focus on offshore financial centres such as Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey & Jersey. Senior analyst in a project team that is currently involved with reviewing complex clients from the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Kingdom & Ireland.
• Completing client risk assessments based on factors such as bribery & corruption risk, money-laundering risk, jurisdictional & reputational risk while also addressing potential sanctions concerns. Specialised working knowledge regarding conducting CDD/EDD and transactional monitoring on offshore SPV structures & Islamic finance Sukuk SPV structures. Part of an internal audit and quality control project team established to evaluate and recommend improvements in the firms AML/CFT procedures, and help enhance quality within our reviews. Producing & escalating suspicious activity reports (SAR's) & iSAR's to the firm's money laundering reporting
  officers (MLRO) across the jurisdictions that the organisation operates in when concerns have been found.
• Helping to ensure the firm complies with various legal and financial regulators in the jurisdictions that it operates in and assisting regulators with audits on the firm. Management of a global training programme that ensures employees understand all the relevant laws, regulations, and internal policies that govern the function of the organisation.
• Monitoring sanctions lists published by relevant regulators and providing guidance and support to the business & management concerning the global sanctions regime.

• Working on the firm's global risk & technology programme, which involved building the systems & processes for AML, CFT, KYC, risk review, conflicts of interest & sanctions across the globe this included being in constant contact with numerous stakeholders involved in this project to deliver it in an effective and efficient manner.
• Ownership of a mass-litigation project that involved the onboarding of circa 11k clients across various jurisdictions with different regulatory needs which included building the systems and process to deliver this project in a compliant, cost-efficient & efficient manner while managing a multinational project onboarding team.
• Contributing to the global KYC refresh programme, which involved updating client information and KYC across the globe as part of the firm's ongoing monitoring obligations. Participating in updating and maintaining the risk register regarding high-risk clients from high-risk jurisdictions as well as processing clients from high-risk countries/clients with opaque set-up structures which includes enhanced due diligence (EDD), source of funds & source of wealth.
• Contributing to the training and competence programme the firm rules to ensure high standards across compliance.

Education

BA/BA (Hons) Finance, Investment & Risk | University