Senior Compliance Specialist

Role Overview

Senior Compliance Specialist at Weekday AI, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. This is a full-time position supporting one of Weekday's clients—a regulated financial institution.

Role Purpose

Support the regulatory compliance and financial crime risk management framework of a regulated financial institution operating within the Second Line of Defence. The role provides compliance oversight, regulatory guidance, monitoring, and risk management across both Regulatory Compliance (50%) and Financial Crime Compliance (50%), including Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Counter-Terrorist Financing (CFT), sanctions, and Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.

Key Responsibilities

Regulatory Compliance Framework

• Support implementation and maintenance of the Regulatory Compliance Framework in line with FSRA, ADGM, and UAE regulatory requirements.
• Provide compliance guidance to business, Operations, and support functions on regulatory obligations, new products, business initiatives, and outsourcing arrangements.
• Monitor regulatory developments and coordinate impact assessments, policy updates, and implementation of required changes.
• Draft and maintain compliance policies, procedures, governance documents, and control frameworks.

Monitoring and Assessment

• Conduct compliance monitoring reviews, thematic assessments, and control testing in accordance with the Compliance Monitoring Programme.
• Track audit findings, regulatory observations, and remediation actions to ensure timely closure.
• Contribute to enterprise-wide financial crime risk assessments and monitor emerging AML, CFT, sanctions, fraud, and other financial crime risks.

Regulatory Engagement and Reporting

• Support regulatory inspections, information requests, and internal and external audit reviews.
• Prepare compliance reports, regulatory submissions, committee materials, and management updates.
• Prepare financial crime management information and analyse trends across KYC reviews, transaction monitoring alerts, sanctions alerts, and suspicious transaction reporting.

Know Your Customer and Customer Due Diligence

• Review customer onboarding, periodic reviews, and event-driven KYC cases, including customer risk assessments, beneficial ownership structures, and Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD).
• Experience supporting corporate, institutional, and high-risk customer relationships.

Financial Crime Investigations

• Investigate sanctions screening alerts, document findings, escalate potential matches, and support sanctions risk assessments.
• Review transaction monitoring alerts, investigate unusual activity, document conclusions, and escalate suspicious cases to the MLRO.
• Assist with suspicious activity investigations, supporting documentation, internal escalations, and applicable reporting timelines.

Policy and Procedure Development

• Maintain and enhance AML/CFT, sanctions, customer due diligence, and transaction monitoring policies and procedures.

Awareness and Accountability

• Support compliance awareness initiatives and promote regulatory accountability across the organisation.

Qualifications & Experience

• 5+ years of relevant experience in regulatory compliance, financial crime compliance, AML/CFT, risk, or compliance operations within banking, financial services, fintech, or another regulated institution.
• Practical experience across both Regulatory Compliance and Financial Crime Compliance.
• Strong knowledge of FSRA regulations, ADGM requirements, UAE AML/CFT legislation, and sanctions frameworks.
• Understanding of FATF Recommendations and international financial crime compliance standards.
• Experience with KYC, Customer Due Diligence (CDD), Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD), sanctions screening, transaction monitoring, and suspicious activity investigations.
• Familiarity with regulatory change management, compliance monitoring, control testing, audit coordination, and regulatory reporting.
• Bachelor's degree in Law, Finance, Business Administration, Accounting, Risk Management, or a related discipline.
• Professional qualifications such as ICA Diploma in Compliance, ICA Diploma in AML, ACAMS, or equivalent certifications are preferred.

Skills & Competencies

• Strong analytical, investigative, and problem-solving skills with excellent attention to detail.
• Ability to interpret regulations and translate requirements into practical policies, procedures, and controls.
• Excellent report-writing, documentation, communication, and stakeholder-management skills.
• Ability to exercise independent judgement, challenge constructively, and escalate issues appropriately.
• Proficiency in compliance monitoring, case management, and financial crime systems.

Additional Information

• Salary range: Rs 500,000 – Rs 5,000,000 (INR 5–50 LPA).
• Full-time contract.