Steve Gurdak, Group Supervisory of the Northern Virginia Financial Initiative discusses the work of his SAR Review team, the importance of law enforcement collaboration when working SARS and the importance of SAR narratives.

In this episode of AML Conversations, John sits down with Sara Crowe, Strategic Initiatives Director, Financial Systems for the Polaris Project. Sara leads Polaris’s efforts to partner with the financial services industry to implement a comprehensive and industry-wide strategy to intervene in the crime of human trafficking. This initiative aims to 1) disrupt human trafficking businesses on a global scale by using existing financial system structures and processes (such as anti-money laundering and economic sanctions frameworks) to decrease the profitability of sex and labor trafficking while increasing the risk to traffickers; 2) shift financing practices to reward businesses with good labor conditions; and 3) bolster financial resiliency of vulnerable populations and trafficking survivors through financial inclusion initiatives.

During their discussion, John and Sara cover issues related to the crimes of human trafficking during the pandemic, the value of partnering with the financial sector and how to get engaged in any of a variety of projects supporting the detection and prevention of human trafficking.

In this episode of AML Conversations, John Byrne interviews David Stewart, Director, Financial Services Industry, Fraud & Security Intelligence Practice for SAS Institute Inc. David has spent many years in the AML/Financial Crime space and his insight is sought by many in our community.

During their discussion, John and David discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on his global team, how he sees compliance after the “new normal” and the recent SAS paper, “What is next- generation AML?.” The paper delves into issues such as innovation, model governance and how to manage AML and fraud.

In the second episode of our AML Conversations series with members of IRSCI, John Byrne sits down with Greg Monahan, IRS Supervisory Special Agent of the Cyber Crimes Unit and Chris Janczewski, IRS Special Agent in the Pittsburgh office. 

Together, they discuss the impact of cybercrime both in the US and abroad. Additionally, John and Chris go through two major cases, one on a group selling child pornography for Bitcoin, and another investigation that resulted in prosecution of a Chinese money launderer. These agents also offer “red flag indicators” for financial institutions to spot cyber threats, discuss the importance of IRS partnering with other agencies, and working with the private sector.

Marilu Jimenez sits down with Andy Fernandez, partner at Holland & Knight an a leading expert in sanctions compliance. The sanctions regime has become increasingly more complex. We discussed the recent guidance OFAC issued in the summer on culture.

Also, two particular types of sanctions were discussed which are extremely relevant in the US and Latin American markets: the rollback of the general licenses related to Cuba and the complexity of the Venezuelan sanctions.

In this episode of We Are Our Heroes, Chelsea Robbins and Joe McNamara sit down with Coletun Long and Chad Squires, both of whom have successfully completed their advanced CAMS certification in Financial Crimes Investigation. During their discussion, Coletun and Chad walk through the decision and execution processes that lead them to pursuing and attaining their advanced certifications.

The crew also talks about opportunities in the industry, the culture at AML RightSource, and more!

Self-Awareness is like the crust of a tasty quiche. The crust, prepared separately, serves as the foundation within which all other ingredients reside. Just like a tasty quiche, Emotional Intelligence has a ‘crust’ or foundation called Self-Awareness on which all other competencies are developed. This podcast discusses Self-Awareness in more detail plus provides a framework for intentional discovery.

Beyond IP, the role of geolocation data in combating AML and fraud. John Byrne sits down with David Briggs, CEO and Co-Founder of GeoGuard and GeoComply, to discuss the limitations of IP addresses and the role that advanced geolocation data can play in AML and in fighting other types of financial fraud, FinCEN’s recent guidance on encouraging innovative responses to COVID-19 fraud, and how to improve the BSA/AML data analysis infrastructure.

Erik Vingelen - COVID-19 AML Resource Challenges by AML RightSource

In this episode of AML Conversations, John sits down to discuss the AML challenges and successes in the gaming industry with the former Senior Director of Gaming Policy at the American Gaming Association (AGA), Elizabeth Cronan. Now the Vice President Government Relations at Geoguard, Cronan elaborates on various themes in enforcement actions, the rise of mobile and on-line gaming, and the increase in sports betting.