Compliance and Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO), Senior Manager

Visa is a world leader in payments and technology, with over 259 billion payments transactions flowing safely between consumers, merchants, financial institutions, and government entities in more than 200 countries and territories each year. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable, and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses, and economies to thrive while driven by a common purpose – to uplift everyone, everywhere by being the best way to pay and be paid.

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Team Summary

Visa is looking for a Compliance Senior Manager based in Hong Kong to serve as the Compliance Officer (CO) and Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) for Visa’s regulated entity in Hong Kong. This role will be part of Currencycloud’s Asia Pacific (APAC) Compliance and Regulatory team. Currencycloud is part of Visa Group entities and covers Visa’s regulated payment business within Money Movement Solutions (MMS) in APAC. Currencycloud is also consolidated under Visa Direct which streamlines all of Visa’s cross border payments under one unified branding. The Currencycloud APAC Compliance and Regulatory team serves as a critical partner to the MMS business, providing pragmatic, solutions-oriented advice to ensure that the regulated payment activities within licensed entities in APAC are in line with the local regulatory requirements where the licensed entities are operating in as well as Visa’s group standards. The team is part of the second-line Compliance function within Visa’s Group Compliance.

What a Compliance Senior Manager (CO and MLRO) does at Visa:

Based in Hong Kong, this position is responsible for the overall AML and regulatory compliance of Visa’s regulated business as Money Service Operator (MSO) in Hong Kong and will serve as the CO and MLRO of the regulated entity. This position will be reporting to the Currencycloud APAC Compliance and Regulatory Leader based in Singapore. This role is a newly created position as part of Visa’s expansion plans within the APAC region.

The core responsibilities for this role are as follows:

·       Serve as CO and MLRO to act as the primary point of contact for AML/CFT and regulatory matters to Customs and Excise Department (CED) of Hong Kong, in collaboration with key stakeholders, including the Management team of the licensed entity, Business, Legal and Government Engagement functions. This includes handling request for information from regulatory authorities on a timely basis, lead regulatory inspections etc.

·       Develop and maintain an AML/CFT framework in line with the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance, Cap. 615 (AMLO), taking into account the Group Fincrime Policy maintained at Global level.

·       Responsible for identification and reporting of suspicious transactions (STR), including maintenance of proper records on all investigations and reviews based on trigger events, TM alerts or escalation channels, provision of additional information where required by Joint Financial Intelligence Unit (JFIU) and law enforcement agencies.

·       Ensure timely lodgment of license renewal applications or ad-hoc returns based on trigger events to the CED. This includes handling request for information from regulatory authorities on a timely basis, lead regulatory inquiries and inspections etc.

·       Handle AML/CFT and regulatory audits and ensure that the reviews commensurate with the nature, size and complexity of the regulated activities within the business and the ML/TF risks arising from those businesses

·       Work closely with first-line Compliance function such as the New Business Onboarding (NBO) team who is responsible for Customer Due Diligence, Enhanced Due Diligence, Periodic Reviews etc. on clients, partners, third party service providers etc.

·       Ensure framework and screening controls are in place to adhere with global and local sanctions requirements.

·       Ensure Group Transaction Monitoring (TM) logics are appropriate and in line with Hong Kong regulatory requirements and provide guidance to the TM team over reviews / alerts where required.

·       Work closely with relevant functions to address communications and request for information from clients and banking partners in relation to AML/CFT matters.

·       Develop AML/CTF and regulatory training materials and conduct training to the business stakeholders on a regular basis. Maintain all training records and attendance where required.

·       Provide accurate and timely advice to the Business over AML/CTF and regulatory requirements, ensuring that risks are being adequately managed while balancing business objectives.

·       Responsible for comprehensive reporting including local dashboard and metrics reporting

·       Regulatory Change Management: Keep abreast of changes in AML/CFT regulations and ensure timely updates to policies and procedures.

·       Participate actively in Regional and Global team discussions, including sharing of local practices, updating on regulatory developments etc.

This is a hybrid position. Hybrid employees can alternate time between both remote and office. Employees in hybrid roles are expected to work from the office 2-3 set days a week (determined by leadership/site), with a general guidepost of being in the office 50% or more of the time based on business needs.

What you will need:

To apply for this role, we are looking for someone who has bachelor’s degree or higher education qualification and at least 10 years of working experience within AML/CFT compliance functions in the financial / payments industry. Professional AML accreditation preferred. Legal backgrounds are not mandatory but welcome.

We will also seek candidates with the following:  

• Good knowledge of the AML/CFT legislations and regulatory requirements relevant to Money Service Operators in Hong Kong. Knowledge of other payments regulations over cross border money transfers across APAC will be advantageous.
• Experienced in managing relationships between licensed entity and the regulators.  
• Experienced in financial crime risk assessments, investigations and filing of suspicious transaction reports.
• Experienced in advising on and overseeing the implementation and use of technology solutions for transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, and other compliance activities.
• Experienced in policies and procedures implementation including drafting them. 
• Ability to provide training on key regulatory considerations to Business stakeholders.  
• Comfortable working across regions and multi time zones – although the role will be autonomous within region, strong collaboration with Currencycloud’s Fincrime Compliance and Regulatory group functions in other regions such as UK and US will be required from time-to-time.  
• Excellent written and verbal English, Mandarin and Cantonese communication skills.  
• Specific certifications like CAMS (Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist) or ICA (International Compliance Association) qualifications are beneficial.

Visa is an EEO Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. Visa will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with EEOC guidelines and applicable local law.