[Remote] LATAM Financial Crimes Compliance Lead

Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. Madison-Davis is recruiting for an unnamed financial services client seeking a LATAM Financial Crimes Compliance Lead. The role strengthens compliance coverage for Latin America-related customers and payment activity, with particular focus on higher-risk cross-border activity and Venezuela-related sanctions. The lead will conduct complex diligence and investigations, provide sanctions guidance, and develop scalable compliance controls and processes.

Responsibilities

• Perform enhanced reviews of higher-risk customers and businesses with connections to Latin America, including Venezuela
• Evaluate ownership structures, beneficial owners, related parties, counterparties, PEP exposure, geographic risk, and cross-border activity
• Review and validate source of funds and source of wealth using financial records, corporate documents, public information, adverse media, and customer-provided materials
• Analyze international payment activity, including wires, ACH, and other transaction flows, for indicators of money laundering, sanctions evasion, corruption, or other financial crime concerns
• Investigate sanctions-screening alerts involving customers, counterparties, financial institutions, beneficial owners, jurisdictions, vessels, and other relevant parties
• Apply OFAC requirements to real-world customer and transaction scenarios, including blocked parties and property, restricted jurisdictions, sectoral restrictions, the 50 Percent Rule, and general or specific licenses
• Support decisions involving account restrictions, blocked or rejected transactions, regulatory reporting, recordkeeping, and escalation of potential sanctions violations
• Investigate unusual or potentially suspicious activity and prepare well-supported internal case escalations and unusual activity documentation
• Support onboarding, periodic reviews, trigger-based reviews, and ongoing monitoring of higher-risk international relationships
• Help enhance the broader LATAM financial crimes framework, including risk assessments, customer acceptance criteria, EDD standards, sanctions controls, procedures, escalation protocols, training, and management reporting
• Monitor regulatory and sanctions developments and translate changes into workable policies, controls, procedures, and system requirements
• Partner with Compliance, Operations, Product, Technology, and other stakeholders to implement program improvements
• Maintain clear case documentation, supporting evidence, decision rationale, and audit-ready records

Skills

• 4+ years of experience in AML, sanctions, EDD, investigations, or broader financial crimes compliance within banking, fintech, payments, or another regulated financial institution
• Professional-level Spanish, with the ability to analyze banking records, corporate documents, business information, and source-of-funds materials
• Experience supporting international or LATAM customers within a U.S. financial institution, ideally including foreign nationals, entrepreneurs, privately held/family-owned businesses, or multinational companies
• Direct exposure to Latin America-related customer or transaction risk and sanctions matters
• Strong knowledge of BSA/AML, KYC/KYB, CDD/EDD, beneficial ownership, transaction monitoring, adverse media, and suspicious/unusual activity escalation processes
• Practical OFAC expertise, including sanctions screening, alert resolution, blocked persons/property, jurisdictional and sectoral restrictions, the 50 Percent Rule, licensing considerations, block/reject decisions, reporting, and recordkeeping
• Experience evaluating complex cross-border transactions, international businesses, foreign ownership structures, and source of funds/source of wealth
• Familiarity with LATAM financial crime risks such as PEP exposure, corruption, state-owned enterprises, trade-based money laundering, sanctions evasion, and currency-control issues
• Ability to independently assess ambiguous or complex cases, identify information gaps, reach defensible conclusions, and escalate when appropriate
• Experience with financial crime technology such as screening, transaction monitoring, case management, or investigative research platforms
• Strong investigative, analytical, documentation, and written communication skills
• Ability to convert new regulations, regulatory guidance, sanctions changes, and enforcement developments into scalable operational controls
• Venezuela experience is highly desirable
• Experience coordinating compliance initiatives across multiple teams from planning through implementation is preferred

Benefits

• Remote work is available (open to NYC, Miami, or remote).

Company Overview

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