Finance Director

Director of Financial Crime, Monitoring and Investigations
We are a leading international law and professional services firm providing legal, corporate and fiduciary services to global corporations, financial institutions, capital market participants and investment fund managers. With a global presence spanning the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, we advise on the laws of Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Ireland and Jersey.
Diversity is our secret weapon – it’s the sheer breadth of Walkers people that makes us who we are – gathered from across the globe and fluent in languages, jurisdictions and cultures that help us to mirror our clients and keep our own thinking in tune with the world in which we operate.
The General Counsel, Risk and Compliance (GCRC) team provides support to the global business, ensuring that the firm meets and maintains the highest standards in professional conduct and quality and adheres to its legal and regulatory requirements.
This new role is an exciting opportunity for an experienced compliance professional with a background in the legal and/or professional services sector to lead the firm's global Financial Crime, Regulatory Monitoring and Investigations team.
Reporting to our Chief Compliance Officer, this new group level position will sit across both Walkers' law firm and professional services businesses globally and lead a growing team (currently numbering around 30 compliance professionals) with responsibility for:
Financial crime compliance (excluding new business acceptance), including suspicious activity reporting, sanctions, anti-bribery, tax evasion, fraud and insider trading, and financial crime advice to the business;
Ongoing monitoring (periodical reviews and trigger events);
Screening of clients and related parties against sanctions, PEPs and negative news;
Regulatory engagement, including leading on regulatory inspections, returns and remediation exercises, and dealing with regulators and law enforcement;
Leading on Business Risk Assessments.
The Director of Financial Crime, Monitoring & Investigations will also play a pivotal role in the ongoing development of our policies, controls and processes as they relate to these areas. This will include optimising our use of tech/automation (including through the use of best in market third party vendors), standardising and simplifying our policies and processes across the group.
The Director of Financial Crime, Monitoring & Investigations will directly line manage the Head of Regulatory Monitoring & Investigations, who is supported by a Senior Financial Crime Manager, a Regulatory Monitoring Manager and a wider team of almost 30 compliance professionals. However, we anticipate the successful candidate will work with the CCO and Head of Regulatory Monitoring & Investigations to further refine the team shape and structure to best support the team's broad remit – providing agility, efficiency, consistency and excellent service to the business and our clients.
The Director of Financial Crime, Monitoring & Investigations will work with the GC, CCO and other key stakeholders to further define and deliver our priorities to achieve our vision: to be the market leading legal, risk and compliance function that protects the business and supports Walkers’ strategy for growth through proactive risk and compliance oversight, technical excellence, efficiency, adaptability and client service.
Line manage the Head of Regulatory Monitoring & Investigations.
Responsible for overall performance and output of the Financial Crime and Regulatory Monitoring teams (which currently numbers around 30 team members globally).
As part of the CCO's wider compliance strategy, develop a phased programme of work as it relates to ongoing monitoring and screening, and inspections/remediations, which underpins our vision – exploring and optimising our approach to/best use of technology/automation, people, policies controls and procedures (PCPs), and modes of service delivery.
Alongside the Head of Compliance Operations & Delivery, oversee the planning, execution and delivery of various workstreams within the programme of work to ensure they are successfully delivered on time, within scope and in budget.
Over time, drive towards target team shape and structure with clearly defined remits to ensure the team is able to provide uninterrupted service and expertise to the business, whilst having the agility/flexibility to respond to unplanned, time sensitive incidents or other priorities (e.g. inspections).
Build and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders across the business – acting as a key point of contact on financial crime, regulatory monitoring, investigations and regulator related queries/issues, and leading communications across the business in this area.
Participate in cross-functional initiatives which impact or relate to financial crime, regulatory monitoring, investigations or regulatory engagement.
Drive quality, consistency, service excellence, efficiency, proactivity and adaptability across the team.
Act as a point of escalation for sanctions, high risk clients/instructions, or other financial crime-related incidents referred from the team and the business.
Lead on preparations for/responding to inspections, returns and external reporting, for both legal and the professional services arms of the business.
Oversee any remediation exercises (project managed by our Compliance Operations team and supported by our Regulatory Monitoring team).
Oversee a firmwide programme of regular Business Risk Assessments.
Keep abreast with developments in regulation, technology and the market which are relevant to financial crime, regulatory monitoring, investigations and regulatory engagement.
Lead on internal training as it relates to financial crime.
Bachelor's degree in law, business, finance or another relevant field.
Demonstrable experience in a compliance or in-house legal leadership role in an international law firm or professional services environment.
Compliance expert with deep working knowledge of key areas of financial crime, including AML/CTF regimes and requirements (particularly as they relate to CDD/EDD, PEPs, ML offences and reporting suspicions) and sanctions (including reporting) and some knowledge of ABC, fraud, tax evasion and insider trading laws.
Proven track record of delivering change, including complex projects that optimise technology/automation and working with third party vendors.
Experience working in an offshore environment or with offshore structures.
Strategic: a strategic thinker with the ability to develop and deliver a clear vision and strategy for financial crime prevention, ongoing monitoring, screening, investigations and regulatory engagement, and the ability to align those priorities with those of the wider Compliance team and the firm.
Technical: deep knowledge of relevant laws and regulations as they relate to financial crime – in particular, MLRs and POCA (and equivalent money laundering laws), the Bribery Act, FCPA.
Quality: strong attention to detail and produces high quality work product.
Emotional intelligence: ability to empathise, understand, and manage emotions effectively, fostering a positive and inclusive work environment.
Commercial: sound commercial decision-making; adopts a risk-based approach. Walkers is a global business, and this role may therefore require audio or video conferencing outside of normal business hours.
This role is based at our London office. However, our agile working policy does allow some home working each week.
Some international travel may be required.
#