Tamara

Head of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) - Saudi National

Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaPosted 2 months ago

Apply link checked 3 days ago

Salary
AED 59k–88k a month
Job type
Full time
Level
Senior
Field
Legal & Compliance
Work mode
On site

About the role

About Us Tamara is a leading fintech platform in Saudi Arabia and the GCC region with a mission to help people own their dreams built on being simple, trusted, and everywhere our customers need us. Today, more than 25 million customers and over 130,000 partner merchants depend on Tamara every day for reliable financial solutions across retail, travel, education, healthcare, and beyond. Tamara is backed by Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned company of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and SNB Capital, among others. Your Role The Head of AML will lead and manage the overall operations, activities, and responsibilities of the AML/CTF Department, reporting administratively to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and functionally to the Audit Committee. The role is responsible for developing, implementing, and maintaining the company’s Anti-Money Laundering, Counter-Terrorist Financing, and Proliferation Financing (AML/CTF/PF) framework in Saudi Arabia. This includes ensuring compliance with the Saudi Anti-Money Laundering Law and its Implementing Regulations, SAMA requirements, SAFIU reporting obligations, and applicable Targeted Financial Sanctions requirements. The Head of AML will work closely with business and control functions to identify and assess financial-crime risks, ensure that effective controls are implemented consistently across the company, remediate identified gaps, and promote a strong culture of AML/CTF/PF compliance. Your Responsibilities - AML/CTF/PF Framework and Controls: Develop, implement, monitor, and continuously enhance the company’s AML/CTF/PF framework and controls to ensure their effectiveness and alignment with applicable regulatory requirements. - Oversight of AML/CTF/PF Operations: Lead and oversee the AML/CTF Unit’s activities, ensuring that all responsibilities are performed effectively and that identified control or process deficiencies are addressed promptly. - Policies and Procedures: Develop, maintain, and periodically review the company’s AML/CTF/PF policies, procedures, standards, and operating controls to reflect regulatory developments, emerging risks, and relevant industry practices. - Enterprise-Wide Risk Assessment: Oversee the identification and assessment of money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing risks arising from the company’s customers, products, services, transactions, delivery channels, and geographic exposure. - Stakeholder Management and Advisory: Build and maintain effective relationships with key internal stakeholders and provide guidance and advice on AML/CTF/PF risks, regulatory requirements, new products, business initiatives, and control enhancements. - Sanctions and PEP Screening: Oversee sanctions, Targeted Financial Sanctions, and politically exposed person screening controls, including alert investigation, escalation, decision-making, freezing measures, and regulatory reporting where applicable. - Board and Senior Management Reporting: Provide the CEO and Audit Committee with regular reports on the company’s AML/CTF/PF risk exposure, control effectiveness, key performance indicators, material cases, regulatory developments, identified deficiencies, and the status of remediation actions. - Stakeholder Management and Advisory: Build and maintain effective relationships with key internal stakeholders and provide guidance, awareness, and advice on AML/CTF/PF risks, requirements, and controls. - Transaction Monitoring & Alert Management: Oversee transaction monitoring mechanisms ensuring effective rule tuning, threshold settings, and scenario management to minimize false positives. - Suspicious Activity Reporting: Ensure that unusual activities are investigated appropriately and that suspicious transaction or activity reports are submitted accurately, confidentially, and within the applicable timelines to the Saudi Financial Intelligence Unit through official reporting channels. - Regulatory Engagement: Act as the primary point of contact for AML/CTF/PF matters and coordinate timely, accurate, and complete responses to requests, inspections, and inquiries from SAMA, SAFIU, and other competent authorities. - Team Leadership: Manage and develop the AML/CTF team, establish clear responsibilities and performance expectations, and ensure the function has appropriate resources, knowledge, systems, and capabilities. Your expertise - At least 6 + years of relevant experience in AML/CTF, financial-crime compliance, regulatory compliance, or a related field, including experience in a leadership or management role under SAMA supervision. - Previously approved / pre-approved by SAMA is highly desirable, but not mandatory. - Strong knowledge of the Saudi AML/CTF regulatory framework, SAMA requirements, SAFIU reporting obligations, Targeted Financial Sanctions, and relevant international standards. - Extensive experience in transaction monitoring, alert and case management, suspicious activity investigations, sanct

Requirements

At least 6+ years of relevant experience in AML/CTF, financial-crime compliance, regulatory compliance, or a related field, including experience in a leadership or management role under SAMA supervision. Previously approved / pre-approved by SAMA is highly desirable, but not mandatory.

Responsibilities

  • - Develop, implement, monitor, and continuously enhance the AML/CTF/PF framework and controls to ensure effectiveness and regulatory alignment.
  • - Lead and oversee the AML/CTF Unit’s activities and address control or process deficiencies promptly.
  • - Develop, maintain, and periodically review AML/CTF/PF policies, procedures, standards, and operating controls reflecting regulatory developments and industry practices.
  • - Oversee enterprise-wide risk assessment for money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing across customers, products, services, transactions, channels, and geography.
  • - Build and maintain relationships with internal stakeholders and provide guidance on AML/CTF/PF risks, regulatory requirements, and control enhancements.
  • - Oversee sanctions, TFS, and PEP screening controls, including alert investigation, escalation, decision-making, and regulatory reporting where applicable.
  • - Provide regular reports to the CEO and Audit Committee on risk exposure, control effectiveness, KPIs, and remediation status.
  • - Manage transaction monitoring, alert management, and scenario tuning to minimize false positives.
  • - Ensure timely and confidential submission of suspicious activity reports to the Saudi Financial Intelligence Unit.
  • - Act as the primary point of contact for AML/CTF/PF matters with authorities (SAMA, SAFIU, etc.).
  • - Lead, develop, and resource the AML/CTF team and ensure appropriate capabilities and systems are in place.

Skills

  • AML/CTF framework development
  • Transaction monitoring
  • Sanctions screening
  • PEP screening
  • Suspicious activity reporting (SARs)
  • Regulatory compliance (SAMA, SAFIU)
  • Risk assessment
  • Control design and remediation
  • Alert investigation and case management
  • Policy and procedure development
  • Regulatory reporting
  • Stakeholder management
  • Governance and leadership

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