ACAMS Germany Chapter Activities in 2017

Throughout 2017, the ACAMS Germany Chapter has continued to develop its activities and engage with anti-money laundering (AML) professionals across Germany. Events hosted in Frankfurt, Berlin and Munich drew together a number of financial crime experts covering topics such as the changing role of the anti-financial crime (AFC) function and profession, the ever-increasing regulatory issues and their impact on the AFC function, as well as many emerging topics such as cybercrime and trade-based money laundering (TBML).

Some key topics facing larger financial institutions include the following:

  • Upcoming changes to the German Money Laundering Act with the focus on identification of offshore interests (stemming from Panama Papers) and data exchange
  • Correspondent banking in compliance with the enhanced risk-based approach of the 4AMLD/5AMLD
  • Our experts discussed the increased focus on the topic of know your customer and the efforts ongoing to put in place adequate due diligence measures, which are embedded in risk management frameworks, as a result of adapted regulatory requirements
  • Anti-bribery and anti-corruption
  • TBML is a topic of increased importance, which requires a good exchange from experts in trade finance, colleagues from the corporate sector and AFC professionals, in order to facilitate the development of effective controls
  • Technology, AML and the importance of data analytics 
  • The impact of increased regulation and investigations and the need for mitigation measures (the importance of putting in place efficient and well documented processes and controls)

A very well received and dynamic presentation on cybercrime and social engineering provided insights into the close links between security and fraud issues and leaves room for further awareness rising not only with our member’s organizations but amongst our members themselves.

Also featured in our chapter’s list of events this year was the emerging topic of Regtech/Fintech and AFC and how Regtech solutions can support AFC professionals to improve their processes and to free up more resources for the assessment and analysis of high-risk clients and transactions and to add value to the overall risk management of their organizations. Experts also touched on some newly published high-level principles including the Financial Action Task Force San Jose principles.

An important message that emerged from a number of discussions was that AFC programs are moving from a pure back office cost center to a more strategic risk advisory and risk management function offering insights and adding value to the business and their overall strategy.

Our last event in 2017 was dedicated to the changing requirements facing experts working in the AML and financial crime space and the development of the overall job market. The presentation was based on a survey published by LexisNexis Risk Solutions: The True Cost of AML Compliance.

Our speakers included the following experts from financial institutions, Regtech, Fintech and consulting firms:

  • Dr. Thomas Altenbach, EMEA head of AFC, Deutsche Bank 
  • Ronny Wolf, transaction services and financial institutions, Commerzbank
  • Cornelia Tomczak, senior manager, EY
  • Dr. Jan-Gerrit Iken, global head financial crime, AML/sanctions, Commerzbank
  • Pat Hinchin, senior director, product management, Accuity 
  • Dr. Ulrich Goeres, head of AFC, HSBC Germany
  • Cornelia Schwertner, head of regulation, Figo/EFA Co-Chair,
  • Stefan Sulistyo, board member, International RegTech Association and co-founder, Alyne
  • Dr. Sabine Scholz-Fröhling, CCO and MLRO, Fidor Bank
  • Anke Ulrich, LL.M., senior legal counsel, head of AFC and AML, N26
  • Charles Delingpole, founder/CEO, ComplyAdvantage
  • Jennifer Hanley-Giersch, managing partner, Berlin Risk
  • Gavin Proudley, global director of due diligence, Dow Jones
  • Julian Schäfer, head global risk models, Commerzbank
  • Tassilo Amtage, senior regulatory advisor, Commerzbank
  • Inés Lüdke, managing director, global transaction banking, UniCredit
  • Adrien Delle-Case, legal counsel, general policy matters AML, UniCredit
  • Seyfi Günay, sales director EMEA, LexisNexis Risk Solutions
  • Nicole Nikou, team manager banking and financial services, Huxley Associates

All these events would not have been possible without the support and enthusiasm of our sponsors Accuity, Berlin Risk, Bureau van Dijk, Deloitte, Dow Jones Risk and Compliance, EY, FinScan, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, PwC and SAS, who supported our events by providing locations, food, drinks and logistical support. We would like to thank them all for their continued support and we look forward to working together in 2018 and continuing our discussions on various topics.

For a more in-depth overview of our events and membership details, as well as information about upcoming events, please visit our chapter page at http://www.acams.org/acams-chapters/germany. If you would like to reach out to us personally, email us at germanychapter@acams.org.

Jennifer Hanley-Giersch, CAMS, managing partner, Berlin Risk Ltd., Berlin, Germany, jennifer.hanley@berlinrisk.com

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