Financial Crime Director

General Description

Financial Crime Director

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London

Vario is Pinsent Masons’ market-leading alternative legal services provider, offering a unique blend of Flexible Services, Consulting & Technology, Legal Project Management and Managed Legal Services (MLS).

We are recruiting a Financial Crime Director to lead the Financial Crime proposition within the firm’s captive Financial Regulatory consulting function, setting its strategic direction and ensuring seamless integration of legal, regulatory, and operational expertise. Acting as a senior adviser to Boards, MLROs, SMFs and senior executives, the Director provides oversight across AML, sanctions, fraud and ABC domains.

They lead large‑scale remediation and transformation programmes, ensuring frameworks, controls, governance and MI structures withstand scrutiny from the FCA, PRA, and other global regulators. They also oversee delivery teams executing control enhancements, lookbacks, remediation workstreams and regulatory evidence production

Working closely with the Head of Financial Regulatory Consulting, they support business development, global expansion, proposition shaping and cross‑practice collaboration to build a market‑leading advisory capability.

Key Responsibilities

• Set and execute the strategic direction of the Financial Crime consulting proposition
• Act as a senior adviser to MLROs, Boards, and regulators across AML, sanctions, fraud, and ABC
• Provide oversight of large-scale remediation, transformation and assurance programmes
• Oversee control‑framework design, governance structures, MI/analytics, and regulatory‑evidence production
• Lead multidisciplinary teams delivering lookbacks, thematic reviews, and systems/process optimisation
• Drive market positioning, thought leadership, and engagement with emerging financial‑crime risks/trends
• Lead client‑development activities and contribute to revenue growth
• Maintain quality, accountability, and consistent delivery standards across all engagements
• Mentor senior managers and build deep capability across the Financial Reg consulting function.
• Engaging in pricing, bid preparation and contract negotiations
• Collaborating with Vario services and FS Legal teams to ensure consistency in the global approach and to leverage our full capabilities

Requirements

• Extensive experience in Financial Crime Compliance, AML, sanctions, ABC, fraud or FCC transformation within consulting, regulatory bodies or financial institutions
• Deep working knowledge of UK/EU/International regulatory frameworks (FCA, PRA, JMLSG, FATF, OFSI)
• Extensive experience leading large‑scale remediation, transformation and advisory programmes
• Proven experience acting as a senior adviser to MLROs, SMFs, or Boards
• Demonstrated success managing multi‑workstream teams and delivering regulatory‑ready outputs
• Strong commercial acumen and experience driving client‑relationship growth
• Track‑record of building advisory practices

What We Offer

• Flexible, agile working – including the option to work from home, subject to business needs
• Up to five days’ paid carers’ leave to support your caring responsibilities
• 25 days’ annual leave, with the ability to purchase or carry over an additional five days
• A contributory pension scheme (up to 5%)
• Private healthcare cover
• Life assurance at four times your base salary
• Access to interest‑free loans for season tickets, gym membership, and rental deposits
• Cycle to work scheme

Our strength lies in our differences.

We are a Disability Confident and top Stonewall employer, a Valuable 500 member, a founding member of the Mindful Business Charter, signatory of the Race at Work Charter and a proud partner of Neurodiversity in Law. We encourage and value different ideas and styles of thinking. It’s with different perspectives that we’ll find solutions to our clients’ most complex challenges. It’s how we’ll deliver outstanding results today, and tomorrow.We want everybody attending an interview to be comfortable and able to fully demonstrate their experience and talents. xwzovoh

Our in-house recruiter, Victoria Greaves, would be happy to have an informal chat about this role, provide this job advert or our application form in an alternative format, and/or discuss any reasonable adjustments to be made either during the recruitment process or after offer stage. You can contact Victoria by emailing