METKEL ASFAHA

• Develop, maintain, and enhance UK Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF), Sanctions, Safeguarding, and Financial Crime policies and procedures.
• Design and implement Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD), Source of Funds (SoF), Source of Wealth (SoW), and customer risk assessment frameworks through effective internal controls.
• Ensure compliance with UK regulatory requirements and industry best practices across all financial crime and safeguarding controls.
• Act as the primary point of contact for regulatory engagement with UK, Canadian, and Nigerian regulators, managing regulatory requests, reporting, and ongoing supervisory relationships.
• Lead relationships with banking and payment partners on AML, safeguarding, compliance, and risk management matters.
• Support senior management in promoting a strong compliance and risk culture across the organisation.
• Own and maintain first-line Financial Crime, Sanctions, Anti-Bribery & Corruption (ABC), and Safeguarding risk management frameworks.
• Conduct and oversee annual Business-Wide Risk Assessments (BWRA) covering Financial Crime, Sanctions, ABC, and Safeguarding risks.
• Manage escalations relating to Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), sanctions alerts, and high-risk customer reviews.
• Oversee financial crime, safeguarding, and regulatory audits, including management of remediation programmes and control enhancements

Key Achievements

• Designed and implemented the firm's CASS 15 safeguarding framework, including governance, controls, reconciliations, and ongoing monitoring processes.
• Led the implementation and integration of transaction monitoring and customer onboarding/ID&V platforms, including configuration, rule design, parameter calibration, testing, and optimisation (HawkAI and Sumsub).
• Successfully managed multiple AML and safeguarding audits, coordinating responses with auditors and driving remediation activities to completion.
• Developed and implemented a comprehensive Compliance Monitoring Programme from inception, establishing ongoing assurance over regulatory obligations and key controls.
• Established and embedded a Business-Wide Risk Assessment framework to identify, assess, and monitor financial crime and operational risks.
• Strengthened the safeguarding framework through a comprehensive audit-led remediation programme, resulting in enhanced governance and control effectiveness.
• Acted as the principal compliance liaison for regulators in the UK, Canada, and Nigeria, supporting licensing, regulatory reporting, examinations, and supervisory engagement.
• Built and maintained strong compliance relationships with banking and payment partners, supporting due diligence reviews, audits, and ongoing risk management requirements.
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• Calibrated onboarding and transaction monitoring platforms
• Developed policies for EDD and SoF triggers through internal controls
• Conducted reviews of new product launches to enforce AML controls
• Reviewed new product launches to ensure appropriate Money Laundering risk mitigation controls were implemented
• Managed escalations of Suspicious Activity Reports
• Key achievements
• Enhanced Sanctions and PEPs Screening platform settings, reducing false positive ratios from 34% to over 5%, and decreased average onboarding time from 4.5 hours to 29 minutes. This enabled the business to seamlessly onboard 100k clients in less than 2 weeks

• Oversaw second line of Financial Crime Operations
• Developed a risk-based financial crime framework encompassing all financial crime activities
• Provided risk and compliance advice on regulatory issues, process enhancements, and new product developments
• Designed and implemented governance frameworks, policies, procedures, and systems related to financial crime
• Managed compliance projects, including product launches and platform integrations
• Acted as the primary contact for third-party FinCrime system suppliers
• Key Achievements
• Redesigned and deployed a new Financial Crime Compliance Framework with all associated policies and procedures
• Developed a new Compliance Monitoring Program
• Successfully managed integration projects for onboarding (PassFort) and AML monitoring tools (Napier).

• Responsible for financial crime and AML risks and frameworks
• Managed regulatory changes related to AML
• Provided analytical reporting to senior management
• Acted as the escalation point for high-risk corporate client onboarding and transaction monitoring issues
• Key Achievements
• Developed an in-house automated onboarding tool to streamline the onboarding process for complex structured businesses.

• Supported LQID with regulator authorization applications
• Developed a robust Financial Crime Risk Assessment Framework
• Established a comprehensive fraud/AML transaction monitoring program for all financial instruments.

• Oversaw the implementation of new technologies for digital KYC, AML, ABC, and sanctions checks
• Identified AML/CTF trends and prepared regulatory updates
• Managed compliance and financial crime department to ensure adherence to regulatory responsibilities
• Key Achievements
• Successfully guided the compliance team through an FCA thematic review, resulting in positive outcomes
• Developed a workflow for a new automated corporate onboarding process.

• Assisted the Head of Compliance in implementing financial crime management information
• Provided AML training and advice to senior management.

• Managed the fraud engine (RiskNet) and developed fraud rules
• Monitored transaction data for emerging threats and fraud trends
• Key Achievements
• Improved fraud engine efficiency, reducing false positive ratios from over 40% to an average of less than 18%.

• Analysed transaction data to detect trends and anomalies, reducing instances of fraud.
• Worked with law enforcement agencies to provide data and assist criminal investigations.
• Enforced compliance with financial regulations and reporting requirements to protect corporate interests.
• Investigated suspicious financial activity, researching high-value credit card transactions to identify potential fraud.
• Logged and escalated support issues with the IT department, ensuring appropriate follow-up.

• Collaborated directly with web-wallets and card processors to ensure timely and accurate notification receipt, meeting client needs without delay.
• Conducted chargeback and fraud data analyses to identify patterns and emerging trends, implementing necessary actions to mitigate fraud risks.
• Regularly updated Excel files, databases, and client accounts with chargeback and transaction return data to facilitate daily pay-outs and debt collection.
• Produced comprehensive monthly reports on payment options, detailing departmental performance, company sales, payment returns, collections, and chargeback ratios.