Pod Lead - KYC Managed Service

Capitex is a specialist financial crime compliance firm. We work only in financial crime - AML, KYC, KYB, sanctions, transaction monitoring and fraud - and we resource managed services and remediation programmes across London, Dubai and New York.

We are recruiting a Pod Lead for a Know Your Assets managed service supporting a global asset manager's alternative investments business. Know Your Assets is the financial crime process used to assess the risk attached to a fund's underlying investments: the holding itself, its ownership and control structure, and the counterparties involved, including sanctions, PEP and adverse media exposure.

The Pod Lead owns delivery for a pod of analysts. You are accountable for throughput against SLA, for the quality of what leaves the team, and for the relationship with the investment desks and the client's first and second line of defence. This is a hands-on leadership role on a long-term programme, not a purely administrative one - you will be expected to make the call on escalated cases yourself.

Responsibilities

- Own day-to-day delivery for the pod, including allocation, prioritisation and SLA performance

- Act as the senior point of contact for investment desks and for the client's first and second line of defence on due diligence matters

- Take ownership of escalated and sensitive cases, including complex ownership structures and high-risk counterparties

- Review and challenge risk assessments produced by the team, and sign off where required

- Produce and present management information on volumes, quality, ageing and risk themes

- Identify capacity, capability and process issues early and resolve or escalate them

- Line manage, coach and develop analysts across all levels within the pod

- Work with the QC function to close out quality trends and training needs

Requirements

Essential

- Substantial experience in financial crime due diligence, KYC, KYB or KYA, including complex and enhanced cases

- Proven experience leading a team on a managed service, remediation programme or in-house operations function

- Confident dealing with senior stakeholders, including front office or investment professionals, and able to hold a position under challenge

- Strong grasp of ownership and control structures, source of funds and wealth, sanctions and PEP risk

- Excellent written communication, with the ability to review and improve others' written risk assessments

- Comfortable owning SLA and quality metrics, and reporting on them

Desirable

- Experience in asset management, private equity, real estate, infrastructure or private debt

- Prior experience within a professional services managed service environment

- Working knowledge of the Money Laundering Regulations and FCA expectations

- Experience with screening and workflow platforms such as World-Check or LexisNexis

Benefits

- Long-term engagement on a multi-year programme with a global asset manager

- Competitive day rate, confirmed at offer stage

- Leadership exposure across a full pod structure, from junior analysts through to QC

- Direct working relationship with investment desks and client risk functions

- Ongoing pipeline of financial crime work through Capitex on completion