Specialist, Asset Services (Al Ain)

Role Overview

Specialist, Asset Services (Al Ain) at First Abu Dhabi Bank – FAB, located in Al Ain. This role manages end-to-end corporate actions processing covering Domestic, Regional, and International Markets, handling both mandatory and voluntary corporate actions functions across diverse products including equities, mutual funds, fixed income, hedge funds, structured funds, and ETFs.

Role Purpose

Deliver highest quality client service in corporate actions processing in accordance with international standards, managing moderately intricate to extremely complex corporate action events across Local, Regional, and International Markets while ensuring compliance, accuracy, and timely execution.

Key Responsibilities

Corporate Actions Processing

• Monitor and process daily corporate actions covering Domestic, Regional, and International Markets for mandatory and voluntary functions across equities, mutual funds, fixed income, hedge funds, structured funds, and ETFs.
• Handle moderately intricate to extremely complex corporate action events across Local, Regional, and International Markets.
• Process receipt of market and sub-custodian announcements.
• Perform scrubbing and comparison of data.
• Notify corporate action events to clients.
• Reconcile client positions with respective sub-custodians and markets.
• Monitor appropriate posting of accruals and entitlements to client accounts.
• Solicit and receive responses from clients for all voluntary events and submit instructions to respective sub-custodians, markets, agents, and processing banks prior to deadline dates.
• Track and respond to internal and external clients' queries by providing clear, detailed corporate action information in line with relevant market rules, regulations, and corporate actions best practices.
• Maintain excellent knowledge related to corporate actions SWIFT messages and their usage.

Stakeholder Communication

• Communicate with multiple entities including Clients, Counter parties, Markets, Sub-Custodians, Regulators, Companies, Brokers, Paying Agents, and Issuers covering Local, Regional, and Global Markets related to the corporate actions process.
• Support Due Diligence visits linking to corporate actions process.
• Coordinate with various stakeholders including Markets, Sub-Custodians, Agents, Companies, Depositories, Brokers, and Issuers to ensure smooth, accurate, and timely corporate actions processing.

Quality Control and Compliance

• Adhere to established quality control measures and procedures.
• Ensure compliance with all relevant departmental policies, processes, standard operating procedures, and instructions.
• Demonstrate compliance to organisation's values and ethics at all times to support establishment of a value-driven culture within the bank.
• Monitor all KPIs, KRIs, and Capacity Planning.
• Submit any incidents and issues to AVP for review.
• Monitor transactions to ensure they are being processed according to Compliance and Audit standards and requirements.
• Ensure accurate and timely processing of client and client-impacting instructions.
• Reconcile to confirm appropriate settlement of all transactions (FX, Cash, Securities, Corporate Action, Tax Reclaims).
• Manage transactions that are large in value and complex in nature, ensuring their successful settlement and avoiding loss and penalties to the bank and clients that could cause Reputational, Financial, and Operational Risk.
• Ensure end-to-end corporate actions processing in accordance with regulatory and compliance requirements with increased focus on accurate and timely execution to enhance client experience.

Training and Support

• Provide first level training for new specialists.
• Assist specialists in handling inquiries.
• Support the AVP as required for business-as-usual matters, projects, and initiatives.

Securities Lending and Borrowing

• Participate actively in understanding the Operating module, including Securities Lending and Borrowing transactions that are large in value and complex in nature.
• Ensure their successful corporate actions processing, avoiding loss and penalties to the bank and clients that could cause Reputational, Financial, and Operational Risk.

Cash and FX Settlement

• Review and validate all transactions inputted by the officer or another specialist.
• Escalate all mismatches to AVP.
• Validate all data entered into the system and forward to AVP for review.
• On settlement date of transaction, ensure transaction has settled and all appropriate accounting entries have been executed.
• Escalate any settlement issues or discrepancies to AVP.
• Validate and sign any vouchers that need to be passed for FX and Cash execution for review by the AVP.

Asset Services Support

• Deliver support for Corporate Actions, Tax Reclaims, Proxy Services, Network Management Support, and Income Management.
• Reconcile client accounts.

Position and Cash Management

• Review clients' positions and holdings daily.
• Reconcile positions with sub-custodians and market to ensure there are no discrepancies.
• Escalate any discrepancies to AVP.
• Conduct daily review of client's cash positions to ensure all clients have appropriate funding.
• Escalate to AVP and Middle Office any potential overdrafts or if client is at risk of being insufficient.

Corporate Actions, Tax Reclaims, and Proxy Services

• Monitor sources for Corporate Action Announcements (Newspapers, Bloomberg, Reuters, Sub-Custodians, Local Market Websites).
• Submit information to officer or another specialist for input into the system.
• Support Tax Reclaims and Proxy Services.
• Validate all transactions entered by officer or another specialist into the custody system.
• Ensure transactions are processed appropriately.

SWIFT

• Validate SWIFT instructions inputted by officer or another specialist into the system for AVP to Authorize.
• Provide second level of SWIFT generation process.

Reconciliation

• Conduct second level of reconciliation ensuring all appropriate checks are done.
• Ensure there are no discrepancies.
• Escalate any issues to the AVP.

Project Participation

• Participate actively in understanding new Operating modules and business expansions.
• Participate in section-related projects including system upgrades, changes, processing enhancements, and off-hours system testing.
• Participate actively in implementation of corporate actions processing related to new clients SLA and SLD, Sub-Custodian SLA, New Functions, Products, Market Rules, Regulations, and Procedures with relevant controls to provide highest level of client delivery.
• Understand and actively participate in Projects requirements and system upgrades and changes.

Continuous Improvement

• Contribute to identification of opportunities for continuous improvement and sustainability of systems, processes, and practices considering global standards, productivity improvement, and cost reduction.
• Review processes and suggest and implement changes to enhance client satisfaction and reduce manual intervention and reduce overall cost.
• Track other custodian's offerings in line with International best practices with clear understanding of client's requirements.
• Adapt to rapidly changing business environment and client's requirements.
• Coordinate and work with various internal departments and external entities and concerned persons as an integral part of participation in Projects in order to Reengineer the process for excellence in client delivery and reduce manual activities.
• Assist in preparation of timely and accurate statements and reports to meet department requirements, policies, and quality standards.

Qualifications & Experience

• University Graduate with bachelor's degree OR 5+ years related work experience.
• 5+ years related experience in security services and/or back-office operations, such as managing corporate actions or securities settlements.
• Solid understanding of security services and operations and accounting activity related to security services.
• Specific experience in Securities-related functions such as Client Services, Corporate Actions, Settlement, Data Maintenance and Billing, or Custody Account Opening (preferred).

Skills & Competencies

• Ability to work under pressure and prioritise multiple tasks simultaneously.
• Team-oriented with ability to work under pressure.
• Ability to achieve business objectives without compromising controls and risk parameters established.
• Strong execution skills in a multi-tasking mode and effective follow-up.
• Self-starter with excellent attitude, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Excellent team working skills.
• Articulate information clearly and present information effectively and confidently when working with others.
• Convince others by making a strong case, bringing others along to their viewpoint.
• Maintain strong, trusting relationships while at the same time being comfortable challenging ideas.
• Demonstrate reliability by taking necessary actions to continuously meet required deadlines and goals.

Additional Information

Current department offerings include Position Management, Security/Cash Settlement, Corporate Actions, Reporting, Invoicing, Reconciliation, SWIFT, Market Security Movement, Cash Management, Project Support, Proxy Services, Tax Reclaims, and Income Management.

Planned department expansion includes Securities Lending, Client Short Selling, Network Management Support, and Claim Management.

Volumes are significant, and as this is a new and up-and-coming business, the volumes and

• Full details are available on the employer's original posting.