Financial Crime Matters

In this episode of Financial Crime Matters, Kieran sits down with Michael Grady, chief of the bank integrity unit at the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division during the ACAMS Assembly Vegas Conference in September. Mike talks about the BIU’s remit to pursue criminal infractions at banks, payment service providers, cryptocurrency exchanges and other financial businesses subject to the Bank Secrecy Act. During their conversation, Mike discusses some specific cases involving institutions actively involved in breaking anti-money laundering, terror finance and sanctions laws, which pose a threat to national security.

Craig Timm, Senior Director of AML at ACAMS and a former Managing Director at Bank of America, dives into the staggering $3 billion penalties stemming from TD Bank’s anti-money laundering failures. He reveals alarming statistics about transaction monitoring, with only 8% of transactions properly scrutinized. The discussion covers the implications of ongoing investigations into employee misconduct and essential guidance for compliance officers to navigate liability. Timm emphasizes the importance of personal integrity and thorough documentation in maintaining compliance within financial institutions.

Detecting True Crimes with Great Accuracy, with Oracle’s Jason Somrak In this inaugural episode of “Financial Crime Matters: Industry Leaders,” Kieran sits down with Jason Somrak, Chief of Product & Strategy for Financial Crime & Compliance at Oracle Software. Jason talks about the Holy Grail of anti-financial crime practice: the ability to “detect true crime with great accuracy,” which includes canceling out the noise of false positives. Jason and Kieran also discuss the possibilities and limits of current technology as well as the promise for future advancements in fighting financial crime. During their conversation, Jason also takes a stab at defining what we really talk about when we talk about artificial intelligence.

Understanding Canada’s Enhanced Regulatory Regime, with Jacqueline Shinfield. In this episode of “Financial Crime Matters,” Kieran talks with Toronto-based attorney Jacqueline Shinfield, co-lead of Blakes’ Financial Services Regulatory Group. Jackie details the unfolding revolution in Canadian anti-money laundering and counter terror finance, including creation of a safe harbor for information sharing among FINTRAC regulated entities and new sanctions reporting requirements. Setting the stage for ACAMS upcoming “The Assembly Canada” November 6 and 7, Jackie also talks about how far Canada has come since the Cullen Commission Report by explaining the new role title insurers will play in verifying beneficial ownership in real estate transactions and the new powers FINTRAC will have to examine foreign interference in Canada’s financial system.

In this episode of “Financial Crime Matters,” Kieran talks with Chris Ainsley, head of fraud risk management at Santander Bank. Drawing on more than 20-year history at Santander, Chris details how financial institutions like his are fighting the current spike in online fraud that utilizes elaborate schemes to get customers to authorize payments from their accounts into the accounts of scammers. With it now being possible to conduct all our banking, buying, selling and a host of other transactions online, banks are tasked with educating customers about the intricate subterfuges to trick them into authorizing payments to criminals, says Chris. Financial institutions are having “very complex conversations” with customers to save them from victimization. “It’s not just “why are you making a payment at 2 pm in a foreign country’” anymore, which often involved a stolen or cloned ATM card that the bank quickly canceled and replaced, Chris says. Now, it’s sometimes about engaging a client at length as to why they want to make a seemingly dodgy transaction and warning them of the risk.

CJ Rinaldi, the chief compliance officer at Kraken Digital Asset Exchange, shares his expert insights from his tenure at the SEC. He discusses Kraken's proactive measures to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and fraud in the crypto space. Rinaldi highlights the importance of data in streamlining compliance and transaction monitoring. He also dives into the complexities of staking in cryptocurrencies and the regulatory hurdles that accompany it, emphasizing the need for a clear regulatory framework to ensure a secure digital asset environment.

Former interim chief compliance officer at Binance.US, Christina Rea, discusses her experience overseeing compliance amidst regulatory scrutiny at Binance.com. Topics include challenges with language barriers, inadequate sanctions screening, conflicts with VIP clients, and the significance of integrity in high-pressure compliance roles.

Kieran talks with Guy Ficco, the Chief of IRS Criminal Investigation. They discuss the IRS-CI’s recent success in tracking illicit cryptocurrency transactions. and the threat from money mules. Guy also identifies some of the latest typologies his agency is seeing, while crediting suspicious activity reports from financial institutions as catalysts for investigations, arrests and successful prosecutions.

Former FBI Counterterrorism Chief Eliza Odom discusses top terror threats and the role of financial targeting in intercepting terror funding. Topics include home-grown extremists, global cooperation, cross-border terror attacks, and the significance of financial intelligence in counterterrorism efforts.

Hennie Verbeek-Kusters, a leader in financial crime prevention and head of the Netherlands Financial Intelligence Unit since 2008, shares her insights on the evolving tactics against sophisticated transnational crime. She discusses the urgent need to combat organized drug violence and the critical role of public-private partnerships in tracking illicit funds. Hennie delves into the transformation of financial intelligence units and the importance of collaboration with financial institutions in tracing and seizing drug money. This conversation is a revealing look into modern challenges and innovative strategies in combating financial crime.