Global Head of AML Program - Second Line of Defense

Ready to take your career global?
Make your mark at one of the biggest names in payments. We’re looking for an experienced Global Head of AML Program, UK (Second Line of Defense) to join our ever evolving team and help shape the future of global commerce.

Role Summary

The Head of AML Program, UK is a senior Financial Crime leader responsible for overseeing and challenging the effectiveness of the firm's Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF), sanctions, and broader financial crime risk management framework across the UK business.

Operating within the Second Line of Defense, this role provides independent oversight, governance, challenge, and advisory support to the First Line of Defense and ensures compliance with applicable UK regulatory requirements, global financial crime standards, and enterprise risk management expectations.

The role will serve as the UK functional lead for AML risk management, partnering closely with business leaders, operational teams, legal, risk, compliance, and regulators to ensure financial crime risks are appropriately identified, assessed, managed, monitored, and reported.

As a senior member of the Global Financial Crime leadership team, the individual will contribute to the development and implementation of the global financial crime strategy while ensuring local regulatory obligations and UK-specific risks are effectively addressed.

What You’ll Own 

AML Program Leadership & Governance

• Lead and maintain the UK AML and Financial Crime Compliance framework, ensuring alignment with global policies, standards, and regulatory requirements.
• Provide independent second-line oversight and challenge of AML, sanctions, anti-bribery and corruption (ABC), fraud, and broader financial crime controls.
• Act as the UK senior financial crime subject matter expert and trusted advisor to executive management and business leadership.
• Drive continuous enhancement of the UK Financial Crime Program, ensuring it remains risk-based, scalable, and regulator-ready.
• Support governance forums and executive committees by providing insightful reporting on financial crime risks, emerging threats, and control effectiveness.

Risk Assessment & Oversight

• Oversee enterprise and business-level AML and financial crime risk assessments.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of customer, product, channel, geographic, and transaction-related risk controls.
• Ensure material financial crime risks are identified, escalated, and remediated through appropriate governance channels.
• Provide credible challenge to First Line activities, decisions, risk assessments, and control environments.
• Monitor emerging financial crime typologies, regulatory developments, and industry trends to inform risk management strategies.

Regulatory Compliance

• Ensure compliance with applicable UK financial crime regulations, including AML, CTF, sanctions, and related regulatory obligations.
• Maintain effective relationships with relevant regulatory authorities, auditors, and external stakeholders.
• Coordinate regulatory examinations, reviews, requests for information, and remediation activities relating to financial crime matters.
• Advise senior management on regulatory developments and associated impacts to the organization.

Policy, Standards, and Controls

• Develop, maintain, and enhance financial crime policies, standards, procedures, and guidance.
• Provide oversight of customer due diligence (CDD), enhanced due diligence (EDD), transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, suspicious activity reporting, and financial crime investigations.
• Review and challenge key financial crime control processes and associated performance metrics.
• Oversee the development and monitoring of Key Risk Indicators (KRIs), Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and management information reporting.

Stakeholder Management

• Collaborate with business leaders, operations, legal, data, technology, internal audit, and risk partners to strengthen financial crime controls.
• Build strong partnerships across regional and global teams to ensure consistent application of financial crime standards.
• Influence senior stakeholders and drive accountability for risk management and remediation actions.
• Support strategic initiatives, product launches, acquisitions, and business changes from a financial crime risk perspective.

Leadership

• Lead and develop a team of financial crime professionals, fostering a culture of risk awareness, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Promote strong regulatory compliance and ethical conduct throughout the organization.
• Contribute as a member of the Global Financial Crime leadership team, supporting enterprise-wide priorities and transformation initiatives.
• Champion talent development, succession planning, and organizational effectiveness within the Financial Crime function.

What you’ll bring

Required

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience.
• Significant experience in AML, Financial Crime Compliance, Compliance, Risk Management, or related disciplines within financial services, payments, fintech, banking, or regulated industries.
• Demonstrated leadership experience managing complex AML and financial crime programs within a regulated environment.
• Strong knowledge of UK AML regulations, sanctions requirements, and financial crime risk management practices.
• Experience operating within a Second Line of Defense framework and providing effective independent challenge.
• Proven track record engaging with regulators, executive leadership teams, and governance committees.
• Strong analytical, strategic thinking, and problem-solving capabilities.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder management skills.

Preferred

• Relevant professional certifications such as CAMS, CFCS, ICA Diploma, or equivalent.
• Experience within payments, merchant acquiring, fintech, or global financial services organizations.
• Experience managing geographically dispersed teams and complex international stakeholder environments.
• Familiarity with global AML regulatory frameworks and international financial crime standards.

Key Competencies

• Strategic Leadership
• Financial Crime Risk Management
• Regulatory Compliance
• Independent Challenge and Oversight
• Executive Influence
• Governance and Controls
• Risk Assessment and Monitoring
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Change Leadership
• Team Development
• Decision Making
• Communication and Presentation Excellence

The successful candidate will:

• Maintain a robust and effective UK AML and Financial Crime program.
• Demonstrate effective oversight and challenge of First Line financial crime risk management activities.
• Ensure regulatory obligations are met and regulatory relationships remain strong.
• Drive timely identification, escalation, and remediation of material financial crime risks.
• Enhance the effectiveness, efficiency, and maturity of the financial crime control environment.
• Contribute meaningfully to the global financial crime strategy and risk management framework.

This role is ideal for a senior Financial Crime leader with deep AML expertise, strong UK regulatory knowledge, and the ability to operate effectively at executive level while providing independent risk oversight within a Second Line of Defense framework.

About the team
Our inclusive and global teams win together every day. We’re proud to have the best minds in the industry, who you can learn from as you grow your career. The people, the energy, the connections – it’s unmatched. Come and be part of an ever-evolving company and get dynamic opportunities that go beyond borders.

What makes a Globalpayer?
Globalpayers think like a client, act like an owner and win as one team. We’re curious and innovative – always finding better ways to deliver impact. We empower each other to make decisions, and it’s our passion that drives excellence in everything we set out to do.