Abidemi AFOLABI
United Kingdom
Summary
Detail-oriented Compliance Professional experienced in AML/CFT/FC regulations across all three lines of defence. Skilled in training staff on policies and procedures through various methods. Utilises strong analytical capabilities and proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Word, and Outlook to enhance compliance processes and drive effective solutions.
Overview
1
1
Certification
13
13
years of professional experience
Work history
Quality Assurance Analyst – Financial Crime
Starling Bank
2023.06 - 2026.07
- Conduct quality assurance reviews of financial crime casework to assess compliance with Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF), and regulatory requirements.
- Assess Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), transaction monitoring outcomes, and financial crime investigations for quality, accuracy, completeness, and regulatory compliance.
- Evaluate Customer Due Diligence (CDD), Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD), Know Your Customer (KYC), sanctions screening, and customer risk assessments to verify adherence to internal policies and external regulations.
- Monitor adherence to FCA guidance, Money Laundering Regulations 2017, Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), and internal financial crime policies.
- Identified procedural, regulatory, and operational risks, providing quality assessments and actionable recommendations for improvement.
- Identify recurring quality trends, root causes, and control weaknesses, escalating significant findings to management where appropriate.
- Delivered evidence-based feedback to analysts and investigators, enhancing decision-making and case quality in regulatory compliance.
- Produced QA reports detailing compliance findings, quality scores, and actionable coaching opportunities for corrective actions.
- Support continuous improvement initiatives by recommending procedural enhancements, strengthening quality controls, and improving operational effectiveness.
- Collaborate with Compliance, Financial Crime, Risk, and Operations teams to maintain high standards of financial crime prevention and regulatory compliance.
- Participate in calibration sessions to promote consistency and fairness across quality assessments.
- Maintain accurate audit trails and documentation to support regulatory inspections and internal governance requirements.
- Boosted efficiency of QA processes, leading to time savings on projects.
- Improved customer satisfaction with meticulous quality control checks.
Contractor, Quality Checker
KPMG
2020.07 - 2023.02
- Reviewed KYC/CDD for completeness and accuracy as part of customer validation, assessing and documenting risks while investigating full ownership and control to identify ultimate beneficiaries and potential PEPs.
- Identified and supported effective resolution of identified KYC deficiencies in order to detect, deter financial crime and protect the Bank of ML/TF risks.
- Chaired resolution meetings with KYC Operations, Coverage, and financial crime, facilitating creative solutions to resolve identified issues.
- Conducted searches using internet sources and third-party vendors (e.g. Google, LexisNexis, Dow Jones/Factiva) to identify negative news and gather due diligence information for prospects and existing customers.
- Outreached clients and relationship managers via phone and email to obtain information about client and documentation, product, trading activities, ownership and key principal officers.
- Filed Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) for identified incidents.
- Made recommendations to exit client based on the outcome of Financial Crime investigative research conducted on the bank’s retail, corporate and PEPs customers to the exit team.
- Worked alongside the Relationship Directors to deliver recommendations on how to proceed with the client relationship, escalating where necessary against internal EDD principles.
- Provided accurate and timely feedback necessary for management decision to support and improve operational standards.
- Reviewing and assessing the strength of internal procedures and tools and giving feedback to management accordingly.
Contractor, KYC Analyst
KPMG
2019.04 - 2020.07
- Reviewed diverse account types, including trusts, LLCs, LLPs, corporations, charities, NGOs, funds, SPVs, and loans to ensure compliance with KYC regulations.
- Reviewed customer transactions from the last 12 months to confirm alignment with customer profiles and KYC requirements.
- Screening and identifying against sanctions, politically Exposed Persons (PEPs), RCA, SIPs and adverse media news identification and risk assessment for proper classification.
- Conducting enhanced due diligence on medium and high-risk customers based in sanctions, high risk jurisdictions and PEPs.
- Review and validate the information within the bank’s core system to ensure completeness and accuracy.
- Monitored customer activities for adherence to bank's risk appetite, escalating concerns to senior management.
- Onboarded new trustees, members, and directors by utilising relevant tools and resources.
- Obtaining appropriate KYC documentation to support the conversion of new businesses i.e., Certification of Incorporation, Share Register, Memorandum & Articles of Association, Audited Accounts, etc.
- Liaising with RMs, operations, legal and compliance team to develop a full understanding of client profile.
- Maintain knowledge of all applicable regulatory, KYC requirements including the bank's Risk and Compliance policies and procedures and adhere to these to avoid exposing the bank to undue risk.
- Utilising public sources with internal systems to gain more knowledge regarding clients and the nature of their business in line with the Global CIP regulations.
- Training of new members of the KYC team and general KYC duties.
Consultant
Automobile Association (AA)
2018.07 - 2019.04
- Managed the entire complaints process from initiation to resolution. of the complete complaints process from beginning to end involving redress.
- Resolving each complaint in a fair and just manner in line with the company and FOS complaint handling standards.
- Identified customer complaints regarding mis-sold AA Insurance policies to ensure fair resolution.
- Assessing customer account and policy documentation relevant to making a fair and justifiable conclusion.
- Ensuring the validity of customer claims.
- Drafted customised written and verbal responses to customers, ensuring compliance with process and timescales.
- Reviewing each case from the start and ensuring compliance at all points to avoid breaches in timescales.
- Ensuring full FSA (and FOS) procedures, regulations and guidelines are followed.
- Reviewing relevant systems to ensure all customer complaint points have been captured and logged to ensure appropriate management feedback.
- Delivered training sessions for staff on complaint handling procedures to enhance understanding and compliance. of current and new staff.
Compliance and Audit Consultant
Lloyds Banking Group
2013.07 - 2017.04
- Conducted client due diligence during onboarding and ongoing reviews, ensuring compliance with AML and regulatory requirements.
- Performing customer identification screening, PEP and Sanctions screening as well as negative/adverse news screening using World check, LexisNexis, RDC and a host of other internal AML screening tools.
- Reviewing referrals from potential matches on appropriate sanctions and PEP lists using OFAC reporter.
- Review of transaction alerts to identify suspicious patterns of customer behaviour.
- Monitored customer transactions to align activities with known risk profiles, escalating anomalies and concerns to MLRO.
- Performing risk classification of potential and existing customers into Low, Medium, and High risk in line with JMLSG guidelines.
- Undertaking onboarding and periodic reviews of various entity types including corporate, retail and investment banking.
- Undertook due diligence verification for individuals and legal entities trading globally, including UK and overseas companies, SPVs, funds, trusts, and partnerships.
- Worked as a contractor on various projects, providing specialised skills and expertise.
Education
MSc - Mechanical Engineering
City University
LondonSkills
- Financial crime QA
- Anti-money laundering (AML)
- Know your customer (KYC)
- Customer diligence
- Enhanced diligence
- Counter-terrorist financing (CTF)
- Politically exposed persons (PEPs)
- Sanctions screening
- Transaction monitoring
- Suspicious activity reports (SARs)
- FCA compliance
- Money laundering regulations
- Proceeds of crime
- Risk-based approach
- Regulatory compliance
- Data analysis
Certification
- International Compliance Association Certificate in Anti Money Laundering (Distinction)
- International Compliance Association Advanced Certificate in Anti-Money Laundering (In-view)
REFERENCES
References available upon request
Timeline
Quality Assurance Analyst – Financial Crime
Starling Bank
2023.06 - 2026.07
Contractor, Quality Checker
KPMG
2020.07 - 2023.02
Contractor, KYC Analyst
KPMG
2019.04 - 2020.07
Consultant
Automobile Association (AA)
2018.07 - 2019.04
Compliance and Audit Consultant
Lloyds Banking Group
2013.07 - 2017.04
MSc - Mechanical Engineering
City University