Jaede Tan is head of Asia-Pacific at ACAMS, leading a team of sales, support and anti-financial crime (AFC) specialists across the region with contingents in Singapore, China, South Korea, India, Japan and Australia. Tan has 20 years of experience in building and leading teams across the education, technology, banking and finance sectors in both Europe and Asia-Pacific. Prior to joining ACAMS in November 2024, Jaede was the head of International Client business at Sterling Check (now First Advantage) and responsible for founding and building the Asia-Pacific business for ComplyAdvantage, a leading global anti-money laundering (AML) technology company. Having grown up in London, U.K., Jaede has spent the last 16 years in Asia-Pacific, currently based in Singapore and having previously lived and worked in Beijing and Hong Kong.

ACAMS Today (AT): Can you share your journey and what led you to your current role?

Jaede Tan (JT): I originally grew up in London and started my career in the hedge fund/finance space. In 2008, during the global financial crisis, I, along with a few close friends, decided to move to Asia to explore opportunities and I have been in the region and in love with the region ever since. I originally spent three years in Beijing followed by a stint in Hong Kong and since 2016 have been in Singapore―a place I now proudly call home.

During this time, my career focus shifted away from finance to helping to build and scale various businesses in the Asia-Pacific region. After originally moving into the Enterprise B2B SaaS Technology space with App Annie, my first foray into the world of AML/AFC came when I was approached to found and build out the Asia-Pacific business for ComplyAdvantage, a U.K.-headquartered regulatory technology (regtech) business and a global leader in technology and AI-driven fraud and AML risk detection.

It was during my time at ComplyAdvantage that I viewed firsthand how critical it was for people to have the tools and knowledge to detect and fight financial crime and how rapidly the space was evolving. Previously, from the outside looking in, it was easy to fixate on the financial impact of financial crime. It was only by being involved in the space that I came to appreciate the deep human impact and cost, and understand why this is a fight we must all endeavor to win.

It was this experience that ultimately led me to ACAMS as I was deeply drawn by our mission-first culture and deep commitment to investing in, supporting and empowering the global AFC community―especially in Asia-Pacific.

On a sidenote, both my father and my wife are compliance officers, so growing up I always swore I would never work in anything related to compliance. But I guess it’s impossible to ever really escape the “family business.”

AT: What leadership strategies have been effective in engaging stakeholders across a diverse region?

JT: During my time in Asia-Pacific, I learned the importance of appreciating and embracing the diversity in the region. “APAC” is often lumped together as a singular region, but it is a region made up of 74 individual and distinct countries (with many more languages and cultures), 58% of the world’s population and about 45% of the global gross domestic product.

In my experience, true localization is critical to success. Far too often we think about “localization” purely as “translation,” but it is much more than that. It is truly understanding the needs of the customer in each country or region and adapting the way we interact with our customers―from how we communicate, how we market, how we engage, how we meet expectations around customer service and how we deliver product―all while staying within the limits and framework of what we, at ACAMS, as a global organization can offer. Once we have this figured out, it then becomes about truly empowering our local teams to deliver this to our customers.

Finally, it is important to unify the team around common goals, identify and execute against strategic initiatives as one unit, and create an environment where we can all enjoy our work and have some fun along the way.

AT: Which emerging financial crime trends are most pressing for the Asia-Pacific region?

JT: Sadly, innovation in the space is rife with bad actors constantly pioneering new innovative ways to illegally obtain and move illicit funds. AML used to be the primary focus―stop the funds moving and you stop the illicit activity―but the sphere has widened so quickly. Fraud and scams are now a huge problem affecting the mass population on a daily basis and the tools and technology that bad actors are utilizing are truly cutting-edge. This means that now, more than ever, widespread awareness is absolutely critical.

Fighting financial crime should not be siloed and confined to teams or individuals. It is the responsibility of every individual regardless of industry or job role.

I am so proud to be a part of ACAMS in helping to raise this awareness and arm people with the knowledge to help play their part.

AT: What do you like to do in your spare time?

JT: I am a full-time husband to my wonderful wife, Jessie, and father to two beautiful and very energy-consuming young children―Theodore (5) and Ava (3). As a family we love to eat, travel, swim, ride bikes and watch movies.

When I get some spare time, outside of work and family I am an extremely competitive but a poorly talented recreational golfer. I have also been known to enjoy karaoke―especially singing (badly) Disney songs and ‘90s boy band classics.

Interviewed by: ACAMS Today editorial, ACAMS, editor@acams.org