Associate – To train, or reaccredit, as an Accredited Financial Investigator, Proceeds of Crime Team

Salary: London ranging from - £46,000 to £57,400

The team / department

The Proceeds of Crime Team, made up of Financial Intelligence Officers, Accredited Financial Investigators and professional business support provides a dedicated specialist team with the expertise to help the FCA meet its proceeds of crime investigative responsibilities. This forms part of our credible deterrence agenda around prosecution of criminal offences linked to our statutory objectives and remit within the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000 and Financial Services Act 2012.

We provide dedicated financial investigation resource to:

• Investigate, identify, restrain and confiscate the proceeds of criminal behaviours, seeking to remove these from convicted individuals

• Compensate victims wherever possible

• Use enforcement powers available to us to ensure confiscation orders are satisfied

• Use civil powers under Part 5 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) and associated legislation to identify and forfeit recoverable property

• Undertake criminal investigations into money laundering offences under Part 7 POCA

What you will be doing (the role)

You will work as a member of a team supporting the effective delivery of the different investigations under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, as well as wider projects.

Eligible candidates for this role include those that have previously held accreditation through the National Crime Agency (NCA) as an Accredited Financial Investigator.

What you will get from the role

• Responsibility for undertaking confiscation investigations running parallel to criminal investigations conducted by our Enforcement colleagues, typically, but not exclusively in connection with individuals suspected of insider dealing and/or unauthorised activities, using POCA Part 2 and Part 8 powers as appropriate

• Undertaking civil recovery investigations under POCA Part 5, using investigative powers as necessary and appropriate

• Drafting witness statements for Restraint Orders under section 41 POCA or applications for Property Freezing Orders under POCA Part 5 and policing those orders once obtained

• Drafting Statements of Information under section 16 POCA for confiscation proceedings or to apply for recovery orders in civil cases

• Analysing, presenting and evidencing financial data to trace / show the extent and whereabouts of criminal benefit and realisable property, tracing assets in foreign jurisdictions

• Supporting FCA counsel in proceedings, giving evidence in the Crown Court, High Court or Magistrates’ Court where appropriate

• Undertaking criminal money laundering investigations under Part 7 POCA, using investigative powers as necessary and appropriate, along with obtaining / making section 9 CJA 1967 witness statements, dealing with unused material, evidential reviews and planning, managing and undertaking suspect interviews under PACE, obtaining evidence from overseas

• Adhering to the NCA requirements for CPD evidence and training to maintain own accreditation

You must be willing to be trained as an Accredited Financial Investigator, committing to independent study and attendance at all relevant training courses necessary to successfully qualify. These training courses may be away from London and may be residential.

If you have previously held accreditation through the National Crime Agency as an accredited financial investigator and are offered this role, it may be possible to reactivate your previous accreditation depending on your circumstances. You must be willing to complete all requisite re-training, as required by the National Crime Agency, in circumstances where it is either possible to reactivate your accreditation or where completion of the entire accreditation process is required.

This post requires the holder to have already successfully completed, or to achieve successful completion of, national security vetting to Security Check (“SC”) level.

The role will necessitate some travel in the UK with a potential requirement to stay overnight on occasions.

The skills and experience you will have

Minimum

• Exposure to NIM level 3 investigations involving proceeds of crime or complex criminal cases, including setting investigative strategy and reporting to stakeholders on progress

• A "can-do" attitude and the ability to work under pressure, on your own initiative, to meet challenging deadlines and to independently progress case and project work

• Strong drafting, communication and interpersonal skills

Essential

• Awareness of a range of tools to further financial investigations such as overseas enquiries, Data Protection Act 2018, intelligence tools and enquiries, PACE and CPIA legislation

• Awareness of the impact of the Human Rights Act and ECHR on the conduct of investigations

• Strong IT skills, including in the use of Microsoft Office applications, to ensure records and data management standards are met and all analysis tools are used fully and proficiently

• Use of Altia software or similar tools to analyse data and manage disparate unstructured financial information

• The willingness to exercise your own judgement and initiative and be prepared to make and justify recommendations

• Demonstrable analytical and investigative skills

• Commitment to undertake independent study and to attend the necessary courses, to successfully train, or re-train, as an Accredited Financial Investigator

The FCA's Values & Diversity

The FCA is committed to achieving greater diversity across all levels of the organisations. Given this, we particularly welcome applications from women, disabled and minority ethnic candidates for our Associate role.

Flexible working

We welcome applications from candidates who are looking for flexible arrangements. Many of our staff work flexibly including working part-time, staggered hours, and job shares. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want but we won’t judge you for asking.

What to expect from our interview process

The assessment will be in two stages and will involve a technical exercise and then a competency-based interview.