Job Description

Role title: Anti-Financial Crime – Advisory Lead

Contract type: Permanent

Location: Edinburgh/ London/ Aberdeen

About the department

The Anti-Financial Crime team act as the second line of defence to identify and control financial crime risk. By monitoring business outcomes and controls effectiveness, the team are able to challenge Vector colleagues and operations to ensure that the firm is managing risk and working with agreed risk appetites.

About the role

Working with abrdn’s Global AFC Head this role will be responsible for providing day-to-day oversight of the Vector Leads (and their teams) within the AFC team including receiving critical issues and ensuring that appropriate advice and guidance is provided on these matters.

• Supporting the Global Head of AFC in the coordination and oversight of abrdn’s AFC systems and controls, ensuring that at all times the 1LOD and functions conduct activities in compliance with all relevant AFC laws, rules, regulations and guidance.
• As applicable, acting as the registered SMF17 for relevant Legal Entities, to provide Senior management, Boards and the Global AFC Head with appropriate management information and reporting, to ensure each has the necessary information to fulfil their AFC related legal and regulatory obligations.
• To provide advice and guidance on AFC matters including in relation to new products, services and business activities, ensuring that Senior management are provided with the guidance necessary to conduct business activities in line with the firm’s Global AFC Policies and Standards and risk appetite.
• To receive, review, advise, approve, and where appropriate challenge 1LOD escalations. Including, those relating to higher risk clients/activities and any Policy/Standards waiver or exception requests, prior to any required escalations and referrals to the Global AFC Head.
• Identifying and escalating issues which do not comply with law, regulation, policies, standards and risk appetite, and working with 1LOD and AFC Senior management to ensure timely remediation of AFC related matters.
• Working with the AFC Monitoring, Oversight and Governance Lead to design and implement appropriate AFC monitoring and testing activities across the organisation.
• Ensuring the relevant stakeholders are made aware of, and put in place, robust and timely plans to address AFC deficiencies identified. Where appropriate, reviewing action plans and artefacts to provide relevant levels of assurance over the effectiveness of such activities.
• Working with the AFC Policies and Standards Lead and designated Country MLROs in each of the abrdn Country locations to ensure relevant Policies, Standards and Country addenda appropriately reflect and mitigate to AFC Risk Appetite the AFC risks.
• To work with the AFC Risk identification and Control Lead to ensure that 2LOD operational processes are designed to capture and mitigate the AFC risks inherent within the organisation. Including, measures relating to AFC: screening, transaction monitoring and AFC risk assessments.
• To act as the Global AFC’s key point of escalation, including when necessary, attendance at, and active participation in, relevant committees, forums and board meetings;
• To work in partnership with the designated Country MLROs to provide active 2LoD oversight of AFC activities outsourced or relied upon by the 1LOD to 3rd parties including to transfer agents and distributors amongst others.
• To work with the AFC Vector Leads and functions to ensure it can provide key information required to demonstrate the implementation, operation, and oversight of a successful AFC programme.
• To ensure that appropriate AFC procedures are in place and followed within the organisation and that these facilitate consistent, effective, and efficient compliance with Global Policies and Standards as they relate to 2LoD activities, escalating to senior management where risks or issues arise.
• To work with the relevant stakeholders across the organisation to ensure, up to date processes are in place to effectively oversee the implementation of AFC requirements and to escalate where risks or issues arise.
• To work with the Global AFC Head and AFC Policy and Standards Lead to ensure 1LOD and functions specific requirements and risks are captured and reflected in Group AFC Policies and Standards.
• Overseeing the production and maintenance of an AFC systems and controls inventory linking controls to requirements of the Global AFC Policies, Standards and addenda.
• To act as a key point of contact for AFC matters from 1LOD and the organisation mor broadly including attendance at, and active participation in, relevant committees and forums.
• Identification and escalation of AFC Training needs within organisation and where appropriate delivery of required AFC training.
• Liaising with Audit (internal and External), Regulators and AFC Team members to assist in the successful execution of examinations and investigations.
• Working with the AFC Monitoring and Oversight lead and the Global AFC Head, to design appropriate test scripts, management information and monitoring, to confirm that AFC Polices and Standards are implemented effectively and delivering expected outcomes.
• To work in partnership with the designated Country MLROs to provide active 2LoD oversight of AFC activities.
• Assisting with queries from clients, regulators, counterparties, auditors and other professional third parties on matters relating to AFC Policies and Standards; and
• Includes some line management responsibilities.

About the candidate requirements

To be successful in this role you will need:

• Extensive experience of current and emerging financial crime laws, rules, regulations, regulatory and industry guidance and working within a financial services or consulting environment advising colleagues and senior management in the application of policies and standards across the organisation.
• Experienced anti-financial crime professional with proven track record of delivery gained within the financial services sector, a strong understanding and experience of the activities of investments in the asset management sector and ideally also platforms across a number of jurisdictions.
• Experience of managing and maintaining robust Governance.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal skills.
• Experience of UK financial crime regulatory requirements and knowledge of the Joint Money Laundering Steering Group (JMLSG) and the Money Laundering Regulations (MLR).
• Experience of oversight of regulated activities in Luxembourg

Moreover, we recognise that supplementary skills beyond the minimum criteria can greatly enhance your success in this position. These skills are:

• A great teammate – able to collaborate effectively with your colleagues, consistently putting the teams’ goals and interests ahead of personal ones and actively contributing to the wider teams shared objectives.
• Strong Organisational Skills and an acute attention to detail.
• Excellent time management skills – the ability to demonstrate exceptional time management skills by efficiently planning and prioritising tasks to meet deadlines.
• Self-Motivation – you exhibit a high level of self-motivation and can take the initiative to identify and tackle challenges proactively.
• You are able to take ownership of your work, ensuring that it aligns with organisational objectives and quality standards.

We are proud to announce that we have officially become a Disability Confident Committed – Level One employer. Therefore, if you have a disability and would like to submit an application to one of our UK roles under the Disability Confident Scheme, please notify us by completing the relevant section in our candidate questionnaire and one of our team will get in touch and support you through your application process.

Our Benefits

There's more to working life than coming home with a good salary. We have an environment where you can learn, get involved and be supported.

When you join us, your reward will be one of the best around, including 40 days annual leave, a 16% employer pension contribution, a discretionary performance-based bonus (where applicable), private healthcare and a range of flexible benefits including gym discounts, season ticket loans and access to an employee discount site amongst many others. You can read more about our benefits here.

We’re committed to providing an inclusive workplace where all forms of difference are valued and which is free from any form of unfair or unlawful treatment. We define diversity in its broadest sense – this includes but is not limited to our diversity of educational and professional backgrounds, experience, cognitive and neurodiversity, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, religion or belief and ethnicity and geographical provenance. We support a culture that values meritocracy, fairness and transparency and welcomes enquiries from everyone.

If you need assistance or an adjustment due to a disability please let us know as part of your application and we will assist.