News & Blog

Top 25 KYC & AML Thought Leaders to Follow

AML
KYC

From members of law enforcement to ex-convicts and everyone in between, these 25 power players on the AML and KYC scene are speaking out to share their experiences and knowledge with the world, and the world is taking notice.

 1. Richard Bistrong, CEO of Front-Line Anti-Bribery LLC

Richard consults numerous global Fortune 100 and 500 multinationals on current anti-bribery compliance challenges, bringing his unique perspective: a past-life where he bribed foreign officials, cooperated with international law enforcement, and went to prison. Having been a member of the OECD Secretary General's High-Level Advisory Group on Integrity and Anti-Corruption, he shares his front line experience for the benefit of those who confront overseas corruption risk in the field and for those compliance professionals tasked with helping them to manage that risk.

 2. John Boscariol, Partner, Leader of the International Trade and Investment Law Group at McCarthy Tetrault

John has received countless awards for his work counseling on enforcement, disputes, investigations, and compliance matters related to all things International Trade and Finance, including trade-based money laundering. He is Adjunct Faculty of the University of Western Ontario Faculty of Law where he teaches Anti Corruption Law and its Application in International Business.  He is also active in the leadership of the American Bar Association Section of International Law, the Deputy Publications Officer for the Section of International Law, and Chair of the Export Committee of the Canadian Association of Importers and Exporters.

3. David Bundi, Head of RegTech Services at PwC Legal Switzerland

David Bundi is a senior legal and compliance expert in banking and insurance and considered a global RegTech thought leader. David is often invited as a judge at international RegTech startup competitions, such as the AML & Financial Crime International TechSprint of 2018 and Medici’s Top 21. David has also been an advisory board member at a number of successful international RegTech firms. 

4. Joe Ciccolo, Founder of BitAML

BitAML is an international compliance advisory firm exclusively serving the bitcoin and cryptocurrency market. Before launching BitAML, Joe was a founding member and architect of a Bank Security Act and Anti-Money Laundering program for a top 100 U.S. online financial institution and also worked as a project manager for a top 20 international bank, where he managed regulatory and AML audit remediation projects. He is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, Certified Fraud Examiner, and an Anti-Money Laundering Certified Associate. 

5. Peter Collins, Former Content Director for IBM RegTech - Governance Risk & Compliance (GRC) & Financial Risk

Peter has experience developing a range of multi-channel content driving engagement for GRC and FinRisk solutions and campaigns. He currently contributes to IBM’s RegTech Insider, with the latest insights and analyses of news from the worlds of RegTech and Fintech. 

6. John Cusack, Editor-in-Chief, thefinancialcrimenews.com

 John is an experienced financial crime compliance leader with a successful record of working in the banking industry and leading cross-industry and public-private collaborations. He is a two-time co-chair of the Wolfsberg Group, and an expert advisor working with leading RegTech providers, financial institutions, and non-governmental organizations. 

7. Nirvana Farhadi, Founding Member, RegTech Counsel

Nirvana is a recognized global influencer, author, keynote speaker, and collaborator in the RegTech sector, with over 20 years of experience within the financial services industry. She was most recently with Hitachi as their Global Head of Financial Services, RegTech Risk and Regulatory Compliance Affairs; and she worked with KPMG as their Head of Regulatory Reporting. She has covered areas such as GDPR, CCPA, and multiple global data privacy regulations, regulatory reporting, record keeping, AML, and data governance.

8. Keith Furst, Managing Director at Data Derivatives. Financial Crimes Technology Consultant

Keith has years of extensive consulting experience with a variety of financial institutions and his work has been published by American Banker, The Asian Banker, and the Association of Certified Financial Crime Specialists (ACFCS). He has been involved in all phases of project development for transaction monitoring, know your customer (KYC), customer due diligence (CDD), sanctions, trade compliance, and anti-fraud systems. Keith has also spoken at industry events around the world and developed some of the content for a sanctions screening training module for the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS).

9. Sam Gibbins, CEO of Complilearn and Governance Plus

Sam works with a wide variety of clients, specializing in developing and delivering improved regulatory outcomes through advisory work and compliance learning. Sam has a wide range of experience dealing with senior business leaders within Governance and Ethics and Financial Services and Capital Markets sectors with a focus on compliance; AML; financial crime prevention; personal and leadership development; deployment of learning frameworks and programs; and the establishment and development of financially-based education and training programs throughout Asia.

10. Miriam Goldman Eps, Operations Manager at Sqope

Miriam is the Operations Manager at Sqope S.A., a global provider of high-quality intelligence reports on individuals and corporate entities.  She has in-depth experience in AML, CFT and KYC, formerly working for a security and risk management advisory company as Head of Intelligence.  Miriam has particular knowledge of the Middle East/North Africa and Gulf Cooperation Council regions.

11. Michael Hearns, Founder, LaunderingMoney.com

Dubbed “The Real Miami Vice”, this former 27-year veteran South Florida police officer and detective spent a decade undercover investigating large scale cocaine trafficking and high-volume money laundering cases. Michael has worked and consulted on multiple serial homicide cases and his experience and knowledge has been valued as a speaker, consultant, and technical advisor for companies, financial institutions, educators, motion pictures and television shows.

12. Charles Intriago, Lecturer and Consultant, Principal at Intriago Advisors

Charles is a writer, entrepreneur, and lawyer that pioneered the global anti-money laundering movement in the private sector by his 1989 launch of the publication Money Laundering Alert and the world's first information and training business on the subject. He founded the associations ACAMS and ACEDS and their certifications and has led many international conferences. Mr. Intriago also served as Chief Counsel of a U.S. House of Representatives oversight subcommittee and as partner of an international law firm.

13. Neira Jones, Board Member and Advisor, PCI-Pal

With more than 20 years in financial services & technology, Neira advises organizations on payments, FinTech, RegTech, cybercrime, information security, and digital innovation. She is the first member of the Board of Advisors of PCI-Pal (a global leader in secure payments), the chair of the Advisory Board for Ensygnia, an Ambassador for the Emerging Payments Association, and a friend of the Global Cyber Alliance. She has made prestigious lists such as Refinitive Top 100 Influencers in Financial Services, the Top 50 RegTech Influencers, UK’s 50 Most Influential Women in Cybersecurity (2019), 100 Fascinating Women Fighting Cybercrime, to name just a few.

14. Tom Keatinge, Director, Centre for Financial Crime & Security Studies, RUSI

Tom Keatinge is the Director of the Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies at The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), the world's oldest independent think tank on international defense and security. Tom explores the use of finance as a tool of intelligence and disruption and his research is focused on matters at the intersection of finance and security, including terrorist financing, human trafficking, corruption, and new approaches to talking financial crime.

15. Pawel Kuskowski, CEO & Co-founder of Confirm

Pawel is a blockchain enthusiast, Forbes contributor, and the former the Global Head of AML at Royal Bank of Scotland. He specializes in compliance and anti-money-laundering with extensive experience conducting global projects for international financial institutions and cooperating with supervisory authorities. Pawel is also the Chairman of the Compliance Association of Poland and a member of the advisory board of the International Compliance Association.

16. Linda Lacewell, Superintendent, New York State Department of Financial Services

Since being appointed in July 2019, Linda has taken a strong lead as the Superintendent at the NYDFS, with a continued priority in anti-money laundering and sanctions enforcement along with long term plans to regulate FinTech companies and further protect consumers of financial services. She established The Research and Innovation Division, tasked with adapting to innovation in banking, insurance and RegTech; The Consumer Protection and Enforcement Division and implemented the BitLicense, the first state licensing framework for virtual currency businesses.

17. Joel Lange, Managing Director - Risk & Compliance Division at Acuris Global

Formerly of the Risk and Compliance division at Dow Jones, holding a product portfolio focusing on Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Corruption and Sanctions Compliance, Joel has over a decade of experience in the compliance and transaction operations industry holding senior sales, product and professional service roles.  Joel is also a regular speaker on compliance topics at conferences around the world.

18. Sian Lewin, Co-Founder & Head of Client Delivery at RegTech Associates, Founder of RegTech Women

Sian earned her nickname as “The Reg Doctor” as an expert in financial regulation and a career as a change management professional. She has over twenty years of experience managing regulatory change for large financial institutions such as JP Morgan, UBS, and RBS to build their regulatory strength in response to new regulatory requirements, from initial scoping through to technology implementation. In 2017, she was awarded a PhD from the London School of Economics and her systematic research explored the challenges faced by banks in dealing with the volume and speed of regulatory change following the 2008 financial crisis.

19. David Luna, President & CEO Luna Global Networks & Convergence Strategies

Mr. Luna has worked across sectors in 75+ countries, engaging in bilateral consultations, anti-crime and anti-corruption policy and programming, training, and capacity building.  A former U.S. Diplomat and national security official, Mr. Luna is a frequent speaker on transnational threats, international affairs, geopolitical risks, illicit trade and the global illegal economy (“dark side of globalization”) including transnational organized crime, corruption, money laundering, terrorist financing, IPR enforcement, counterfeit and pirated goods, cybersecurity/cybercrime, environmental crime, and smuggling/trafficking crimes.

20. Peter Oakes, Independent Director, Governance Advisor, Business & Regulatory Strategist

Peter is a senior leader in central banking, financial regulation, risk management, anti-money laundering, credit risk, data privacy, compliance, financial services, FinTech and digital currencies. Peter was appointed the inaugural Director of Enforcement and AML Supervision at the new Central Bank of Ireland (2010-2013) and has more recently worked with FinTech firms as a regulatory consultant, mentor, board advisor and a non-executive director.

21. Deepak Raj, Business Development and Marketing Specialist

Deepak is a strategy and research analyst focusing on innovation within the risk and compliance sectors, particularly related to KYC, AML, Cryptocurrency, FinTech, RegTech and blockchain technologies. His deep understanding of the financial services industry combined with his thoughtful and strategic approach has helped many RegTech players and financial institutions around the globe on lead generation, research and outreach, marketing, and sales support.

22. Daniel Tannebaum, Partner, Oliver Wyman, Anti-Financial Crime Practice for the Americas, and Global Lead of Sanctions

Daniel Tannebaum provides regulatory crisis management support to global financial institutions including banks, broker dealers and money services businesses. He also provides strategic AML and Sanctions Compliance Program support during both program creation and remediation. Dan is a highly sought-after speaker on financial crimes issues and is often quoted in print publications and is a regular guest on business television and radio.

23. Michael Volkov, CEO at The Volkov Group

Michael Volkov specializes in government and internal investigations of financial crimes and anti-corruption compliance and defense. He has worked in the private sector as well as within the US Department of Justice and Congressional Committees. Given his broad government experience, he represents clients in federal and state court, before the Justice Department and other federal agencies, and on Capitol Hill.

24. Ran Weissblech, Legal & Compliance Consultant at Coinmama

Ran is a compliance analyst and lawyer working in virtual currency space and provides preemptive legal support to highly regulated companies. Ran focuses on investments funds, AML, regulatory developments, CFT, financial sanctions, e-money, compliance & data privacy (GDPR) compliance.

25. Rachel Woolley, Global Director of Financial Crime at Fenergo

Rachel has over 10 years of experience in the financial services industry, having worked primarily in the funds industry and retail banking. She has a strong background in regulatory compliance, particularly in the areas of AML/CTF.  She is also a contributing author to Corporate Compliance Insights, and Fenergo’s own blog and podcast series.

Check out these 25 experts to keep tabs on the latest developments within the AML industry. They are sure to continue to influence big discussions and ideas surrounding the latest innovations and headlines within the AML space for years to come.


AML
KYC
November 13, 2020

From members of law enforcement to ex-convicts and everyone in between, these 25 power players on the AML and KYC scene are speaking out to share their experiences and knowledge with the world, and the world is taking notice.

 1. Richard Bistrong, CEO of Front-Line Anti-Bribery LLC

Richard consults numerous global Fortune 100 and 500 multinationals on current anti-bribery compliance challenges, bringing his unique perspective: a past-life where he bribed foreign officials, cooperated with international law enforcement, and went to prison. Having been a member of the OECD Secretary General's High-Level Advisory Group on Integrity and Anti-Corruption, he shares his front line experience for the benefit of those who confront overseas corruption risk in the field and for those compliance professionals tasked with helping them to manage that risk.

 2. John Boscariol, Partner, Leader of the International Trade and Investment Law Group at McCarthy Tetrault

John has received countless awards for his work counseling on enforcement, disputes, investigations, and compliance matters related to all things International Trade and Finance, including trade-based money laundering. He is Adjunct Faculty of the University of Western Ontario Faculty of Law where he teaches Anti Corruption Law and its Application in International Business.  He is also active in the leadership of the American Bar Association Section of International Law, the Deputy Publications Officer for the Section of International Law, and Chair of the Export Committee of the Canadian Association of Importers and Exporters.

3. David Bundi, Head of RegTech Services at PwC Legal Switzerland

David Bundi is a senior legal and compliance expert in banking and insurance and considered a global RegTech thought leader. David is often invited as a judge at international RegTech startup competitions, such as the AML & Financial Crime International TechSprint of 2018 and Medici’s Top 21. David has also been an advisory board member at a number of successful international RegTech firms. 

4. Joe Ciccolo, Founder of BitAML

BitAML is an international compliance advisory firm exclusively serving the bitcoin and cryptocurrency market. Before launching BitAML, Joe was a founding member and architect of a Bank Security Act and Anti-Money Laundering program for a top 100 U.S. online financial institution and also worked as a project manager for a top 20 international bank, where he managed regulatory and AML audit remediation projects. He is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, Certified Fraud Examiner, and an Anti-Money Laundering Certified Associate. 

5. Peter Collins, Former Content Director for IBM RegTech - Governance Risk & Compliance (GRC) & Financial Risk

Peter has experience developing a range of multi-channel content driving engagement for GRC and FinRisk solutions and campaigns. He currently contributes to IBM’s RegTech Insider, with the latest insights and analyses of news from the worlds of RegTech and Fintech. 

6. John Cusack, Editor-in-Chief, thefinancialcrimenews.com

 John is an experienced financial crime compliance leader with a successful record of working in the banking industry and leading cross-industry and public-private collaborations. He is a two-time co-chair of the Wolfsberg Group, and an expert advisor working with leading RegTech providers, financial institutions, and non-governmental organizations. 

7. Nirvana Farhadi, Founding Member, RegTech Counsel

Nirvana is a recognized global influencer, author, keynote speaker, and collaborator in the RegTech sector, with over 20 years of experience within the financial services industry. She was most recently with Hitachi as their Global Head of Financial Services, RegTech Risk and Regulatory Compliance Affairs; and she worked with KPMG as their Head of Regulatory Reporting. She has covered areas such as GDPR, CCPA, and multiple global data privacy regulations, regulatory reporting, record keeping, AML, and data governance.

8. Keith Furst, Managing Director at Data Derivatives. Financial Crimes Technology Consultant

Keith has years of extensive consulting experience with a variety of financial institutions and his work has been published by American Banker, The Asian Banker, and the Association of Certified Financial Crime Specialists (ACFCS). He has been involved in all phases of project development for transaction monitoring, know your customer (KYC), customer due diligence (CDD), sanctions, trade compliance, and anti-fraud systems. Keith has also spoken at industry events around the world and developed some of the content for a sanctions screening training module for the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS).

9. Sam Gibbins, CEO of Complilearn and Governance Plus

Sam works with a wide variety of clients, specializing in developing and delivering improved regulatory outcomes through advisory work and compliance learning. Sam has a wide range of experience dealing with senior business leaders within Governance and Ethics and Financial Services and Capital Markets sectors with a focus on compliance; AML; financial crime prevention; personal and leadership development; deployment of learning frameworks and programs; and the establishment and development of financially-based education and training programs throughout Asia.

10. Miriam Goldman Eps, Operations Manager at Sqope

Miriam is the Operations Manager at Sqope S.A., a global provider of high-quality intelligence reports on individuals and corporate entities.  She has in-depth experience in AML, CFT and KYC, formerly working for a security and risk management advisory company as Head of Intelligence.  Miriam has particular knowledge of the Middle East/North Africa and Gulf Cooperation Council regions.

11. Michael Hearns, Founder, LaunderingMoney.com

Dubbed “The Real Miami Vice”, this former 27-year veteran South Florida police officer and detective spent a decade undercover investigating large scale cocaine trafficking and high-volume money laundering cases. Michael has worked and consulted on multiple serial homicide cases and his experience and knowledge has been valued as a speaker, consultant, and technical advisor for companies, financial institutions, educators, motion pictures and television shows.

12. Charles Intriago, Lecturer and Consultant, Principal at Intriago Advisors

Charles is a writer, entrepreneur, and lawyer that pioneered the global anti-money laundering movement in the private sector by his 1989 launch of the publication Money Laundering Alert and the world's first information and training business on the subject. He founded the associations ACAMS and ACEDS and their certifications and has led many international conferences. Mr. Intriago also served as Chief Counsel of a U.S. House of Representatives oversight subcommittee and as partner of an international law firm.

13. Neira Jones, Board Member and Advisor, PCI-Pal

With more than 20 years in financial services & technology, Neira advises organizations on payments, FinTech, RegTech, cybercrime, information security, and digital innovation. She is the first member of the Board of Advisors of PCI-Pal (a global leader in secure payments), the chair of the Advisory Board for Ensygnia, an Ambassador for the Emerging Payments Association, and a friend of the Global Cyber Alliance. She has made prestigious lists such as Refinitive Top 100 Influencers in Financial Services, the Top 50 RegTech Influencers, UK’s 50 Most Influential Women in Cybersecurity (2019), 100 Fascinating Women Fighting Cybercrime, to name just a few.

14. Tom Keatinge, Director, Centre for Financial Crime & Security Studies, RUSI

Tom Keatinge is the Director of the Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies at The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), the world's oldest independent think tank on international defense and security. Tom explores the use of finance as a tool of intelligence and disruption and his research is focused on matters at the intersection of finance and security, including terrorist financing, human trafficking, corruption, and new approaches to talking financial crime.

15. Pawel Kuskowski, CEO & Co-founder of Confirm

Pawel is a blockchain enthusiast, Forbes contributor, and the former the Global Head of AML at Royal Bank of Scotland. He specializes in compliance and anti-money-laundering with extensive experience conducting global projects for international financial institutions and cooperating with supervisory authorities. Pawel is also the Chairman of the Compliance Association of Poland and a member of the advisory board of the International Compliance Association.

16. Linda Lacewell, Superintendent, New York State Department of Financial Services

Since being appointed in July 2019, Linda has taken a strong lead as the Superintendent at the NYDFS, with a continued priority in anti-money laundering and sanctions enforcement along with long term plans to regulate FinTech companies and further protect consumers of financial services. She established The Research and Innovation Division, tasked with adapting to innovation in banking, insurance and RegTech; The Consumer Protection and Enforcement Division and implemented the BitLicense, the first state licensing framework for virtual currency businesses.

17. Joel Lange, Managing Director - Risk & Compliance Division at Acuris Global

Formerly of the Risk and Compliance division at Dow Jones, holding a product portfolio focusing on Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Corruption and Sanctions Compliance, Joel has over a decade of experience in the compliance and transaction operations industry holding senior sales, product and professional service roles.  Joel is also a regular speaker on compliance topics at conferences around the world.

18. Sian Lewin, Co-Founder & Head of Client Delivery at RegTech Associates, Founder of RegTech Women

Sian earned her nickname as “The Reg Doctor” as an expert in financial regulation and a career as a change management professional. She has over twenty years of experience managing regulatory change for large financial institutions such as JP Morgan, UBS, and RBS to build their regulatory strength in response to new regulatory requirements, from initial scoping through to technology implementation. In 2017, she was awarded a PhD from the London School of Economics and her systematic research explored the challenges faced by banks in dealing with the volume and speed of regulatory change following the 2008 financial crisis.

19. David Luna, President & CEO Luna Global Networks & Convergence Strategies

Mr. Luna has worked across sectors in 75+ countries, engaging in bilateral consultations, anti-crime and anti-corruption policy and programming, training, and capacity building.  A former U.S. Diplomat and national security official, Mr. Luna is a frequent speaker on transnational threats, international affairs, geopolitical risks, illicit trade and the global illegal economy (“dark side of globalization”) including transnational organized crime, corruption, money laundering, terrorist financing, IPR enforcement, counterfeit and pirated goods, cybersecurity/cybercrime, environmental crime, and smuggling/trafficking crimes.

20. Peter Oakes, Independent Director, Governance Advisor, Business & Regulatory Strategist

Peter is a senior leader in central banking, financial regulation, risk management, anti-money laundering, credit risk, data privacy, compliance, financial services, FinTech and digital currencies. Peter was appointed the inaugural Director of Enforcement and AML Supervision at the new Central Bank of Ireland (2010-2013) and has more recently worked with FinTech firms as a regulatory consultant, mentor, board advisor and a non-executive director.

21. Deepak Raj, Business Development and Marketing Specialist

Deepak is a strategy and research analyst focusing on innovation within the risk and compliance sectors, particularly related to KYC, AML, Cryptocurrency, FinTech, RegTech and blockchain technologies. His deep understanding of the financial services industry combined with his thoughtful and strategic approach has helped many RegTech players and financial institutions around the globe on lead generation, research and outreach, marketing, and sales support.

22. Daniel Tannebaum, Partner, Oliver Wyman, Anti-Financial Crime Practice for the Americas, and Global Lead of Sanctions

Daniel Tannebaum provides regulatory crisis management support to global financial institutions including banks, broker dealers and money services businesses. He also provides strategic AML and Sanctions Compliance Program support during both program creation and remediation. Dan is a highly sought-after speaker on financial crimes issues and is often quoted in print publications and is a regular guest on business television and radio.

23. Michael Volkov, CEO at The Volkov Group

Michael Volkov specializes in government and internal investigations of financial crimes and anti-corruption compliance and defense. He has worked in the private sector as well as within the US Department of Justice and Congressional Committees. Given his broad government experience, he represents clients in federal and state court, before the Justice Department and other federal agencies, and on Capitol Hill.

24. Ran Weissblech, Legal & Compliance Consultant at Coinmama

Ran is a compliance analyst and lawyer working in virtual currency space and provides preemptive legal support to highly regulated companies. Ran focuses on investments funds, AML, regulatory developments, CFT, financial sanctions, e-money, compliance & data privacy (GDPR) compliance.

25. Rachel Woolley, Global Director of Financial Crime at Fenergo

Rachel has over 10 years of experience in the financial services industry, having worked primarily in the funds industry and retail banking. She has a strong background in regulatory compliance, particularly in the areas of AML/CTF.  She is also a contributing author to Corporate Compliance Insights, and Fenergo’s own blog and podcast series.

Check out these 25 experts to keep tabs on the latest developments within the AML industry. They are sure to continue to influence big discussions and ideas surrounding the latest innovations and headlines within the AML space for years to come.

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