A leading global financial institution is seeking a highly experienced Financial Crimes Risk Processes SVP to strengthen its first-line risk management capabilities within a complex, international services business. This is a senior strategic role, responsible for ensuring proactive, effective, and end-to-end management of financial crime risks across multiple products, regions, and functions.The ideal candidate will bring deep subject-matter expertise, strong leadership, and the ability to influence across a large, global organisation. This role offers significant visibility with senior management and the opportunity to shape financial crime control effectiveness at scale.
Key Responsibilities- Lead and enhance the financial crimes control environment across products, services, and operational processes, including customer lifecycle and transaction-related controls.
- Provide expert guidance to business, risk, operations, technology, and compliance partners to ensure a cohesive, well-designed control framework.
- Assess and strengthen existing processes and controls, identifying gaps and ensuring alignment with global and local regulatory expectations.
- Maintain clear risk and process mapping to ensure transparency of control ownership and coverage.
- Drive the identification, escalation, and remediation of control issues, including root-cause analysis and sustainable resolution planning.
- Build strong partnerships across business heads, operations, technology teams, and second-line functions to ensure a unified approach to financial crime risk management.
- Conduct thematic and targeted reviews of financial crime processes to validate consistency, control effectiveness, and policy adherence.
- Monitor emerging risks, regulatory developments, and product innovation to ensure the control environment evolves appropriately.
- Provide oversight through metrics analysis, monitoring activity, and reviewing corrective action plans.
- Prepare high-quality reporting and updates for senior stakeholders, risk committees, and governance forums.
- Support timely responses to regulatory inquiries and contribute to cross-business initiatives.
- Identify opportunities to streamline processes, enhance efficiency, and improve the client experience.
- Collaborate with peers across the organisation to ensure a holistic approach to sanctions, AML, and broader financial crime risk.
Qualifications & Experience- Bachelor's degree required; Master's degree desirable.
- 15+ years' experience in financial crime compliance, AML/CTF, sanctions, or risk management within financial services.
- Recognised professional certifications (e.g., ACAMS, ACSS) preferred.
- Strong understanding of payments, correspondent banking, trade finance, working capital, and liquidity products.
- Demonstrated experience in risk and controls, process management, or financial crime-related operations.
- Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to influence senior stakeholders and provide clear, insightful challenge.
- Experience operating within a large, globally-distributed organisation.
- Proven project management and change-management skills, with the ability to drive complex initiatives.
- Strong analytical capability with the ability to assess processes and recommend enhancements to quality, controls, and efficiency.
- Independent, self-starting, and able to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
- Experience managing teams and developing talent.
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