Uldis Upenieks, CAMS—Riga, Latvia

Since 2017, Uldis Upenieks has been a chief compliance officer and a member of the management board at Citadele Banka. He is responsible for the compliance function, including anti-money laundering (AML).

Upenieks has 25 years of experience in the anti-financial crime industry and has dedicated more than 20 years to anti-money laundering/counter-terrorist financing/counter proliferation financing (AML/CTF/CPF) matters in the banking sector. He was among the first AML professionals to obtain the Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) certification in 2007.

Upenieks is co-chair of the compliance committee for the Finance Latvia Association, a non-governmental organisation that represents the Latvian financial sector on a national and international level. He is also co-chair of the ACAMS Baltics Chapter. In addition, Upenieks is extensively involved in the development of the AML/CTF/CPF regulatory framework in Latvia as well as setting and maintaining best financial industry practices in these areas. He took an active part in the development of the Finance Latvia Association’s action plan to address de-risking in Latvia. Moreover, Upenieks represents the financial industry during dialogues with Latvia’s financial regulator, Financial and Capital Markets Commission (FKTK), on improvements to know your customer (KYC) regulations and developing a ‘KYC best practices manual’ for finance industry professionals. He is a frequent speaker and moderator at compliance-related seminars and workshops in the Baltics. 

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