Senior Vice President, SVP, Financial Crimes Middle East & Africa - Services

Discover your future at Citi

Working at Citi is far more than just a job. A career with us means joining a team of more than 230,000 dedicated people from around the globe. At Citi, you’ll have the opportunity to grow your career, give back to your community and make a real impact.

Job Overview

Are you looking for a career move that will put you at the heart of a global financial institution? Then bring your skills in client management, problem solving and communication to Citi’s Financial Crimes team.

By Joining Citi, you will become part of a global organisation whose mission is to serve as a trusted partner to our clients by responsibly providing financial services that enable growth and economic progress.

Team/Role Overview:

This first-line role is responsible for supporting the Services businesses in managing and mitigating financial crime risks end-to-end for the MEA cluster, with a specific focus on ensuring proactive, effective, and sustainable financial crimes risk management. The successful candidate will lead the development and implementation of a comprehensive financial crimes strategy that integrates Sanctions, Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Fraud, Anti-Bribery and Corruption (ABC), Fraud and Reputational Risk management.

The Financial Crimes SVP is a hands-on role and will, among other, provide guidance, on-going support, and constructive challenge to the business teams to ensure appropriate & effective controls are introduced and maintained. Further, the Financial Crimes Risk SVP will help establish and maintain a robust Financial Crime control environment across the MEA cluster. Developing a proactive control approach, assisting management in achieving strategic objectives, promoting efficiency, reducing the risk of loss, and helps ensure compliance with corporate policies, procedures, laws, and regulations.

The Financial Crimes Risk SVP will provide leadership, direction, governance, and oversight to ensure that implementation of controls is effective and consistent with Citi standards and applicable law in the MEA countries. The position will report to the Services global head of Financial Crime Risks.

What you’ll do:

• Understand business-owned products and services (payments, Baas, digital assets, custody, fund services, CC, LMS, trade finance…), as well as corresponding financial crimes-related controls, and processes (e.g., customer, relationship, and transactional screening).
• Provide financial crimes compliance/risk management subject matter expertise to the Services businesses in MEA to ensure the design and implementation of a coherent and effective control environment.
• Assess complex issues, structure potential solutions, and drive effective resolution with other senior stakeholders.
• Assess and help manage Financial Crime (AML, Sanctions, ABC & Fraud) as well as Reputational Risk across Services in MEA
• Assess existing control framework, identify potential compliance gaps.
• Drive execution ensuring compliance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations, as well as effectiveness of the control environment.
• Ensure adequate mapping of risk and processes and clear control ownership.
• Create & maintain a robust partnership with the business heads, operations, technology and the second line of defense.
• Ensure clear and timely escalation of control issues, while assisting their adequate management and internal reporting.
• Drive a consistent and holistic approach to Financial Crimes risk management across Services.
• Ensure early engagement on new business initiatives to ensure timely support of commercial priorities and full adherence to global, regional & local risk management policies and procedures.
• Conduct reviews of financial crimes processes and procedures to ensure that both controls and processes are in keeping with policy and business expectations.
• Assure that controls have be