Sr. Specialty Risk Mitigation Analyst at First Foundation Inc. in Pasadena, CA

Summary: Responsible for the preliminary monitoring of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) compliance program designed to ensure that the Bank achieves optimum compliance with applicable laws and regulations including, but not limited to, the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), USA PATRIOT Act, and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). This position provides an assessment of suspicious activity as it relates to BSA and AML in the areas of High Risk Accounts, New Account documentation, Customer Information Process (CIP) and Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) Additionally, this position reviews data as it relates to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). This role specializes in higher risk clients such as MRB and EB5.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Responsible for Case Investigations and Enhanced Due Diligence (“EDD”) reviews for higher risk clients.

• Conduct analysis on transactional data and alert monitoring to make determinations of irregular activity through understanding of historical client activity and regulatory definitions of suspicious activity

• Review, analyze, and assist in making risk rating decisions or changes on client accounts and relationships

• Research BSA regulatory issues and respond to compliance questions from Bank personnel, utilizing legal and regulatory reference materials and consulting with the BSA Manager.

• Monitors alert transactions through the Banks’ transaction monitoring software as it relates to BSA and AML to identify unusual or suspicious account activity and / or financial crime patterns

• Takes lead in financial crime investigations. Offers insights and mentors Junior BSA Analyst with case investigations.

• Conduct analysis on transactional data and alert monitoring to make determinations of irregular activity through understanding of historical client activity and regulatory definitions of suspicious activity

• Assist with editing and updating BSA Office internal departmental procedures

• Ensures the Bank is in compliance with OFAC regulations. Monitors Bank’s OFAC software system to ensure adherence to OFAC Policy and procedures

• Research BSA regulatory issues and respond to compliance questions from Bank personnel, utilizing legal and regulatory reference materials and consulting with the BSA Office Management

• Participates and prepares with the guidance of the BSA Manager for regulatory BSA examinations and audits

• Assume roles and responsibilities in relation to all international product sets and foreign exposure risk to the Bank, including but not limited to, EB-5 Foreign Investors, Non-Resident Alien (NRA) Clients, International Wire activities, and Foreign Business Entity (FBE) Exposure

Job Requirements: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Education and/or Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree required; or equivalent combination of education and experience

• Minimum of 5 to 7 years of prior financial institution BSA Compliance experience

• Holds the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (ACAMS) certification or willing to obtain within a required period as stated by the BSA Office.

Skills:

• Ability to dissect and analyze large amounts of unstructured information to find and resolve high risk ML / TF activity

• Exercise sound judgment, observe the highest degree of confidentiality in the handling of information received in the course of discharging responsibilities and high quality standards when conducting investigations

• Self-starter who is willing to work in ambiguous detail

• PC proficient (MS office) and extensive knowledge on performing internet searches

• Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and written

• Ability to comprehend and follow written and verbal instructions with limited supervision

• Ability to multi-task and prioritize daily work responsibilities

• Ability to trouble-shoot and resolve issues in a timely manner

• Strong teamwork skills, proven investigatory skills and the ability to present intelligence updates to management levels in the organization