Specialised Solutions for Investment Bankers’ Compliance Management

We offer a comprehensive set of risk and compliance solutions tailored to a variety of investment bankers' compliance obligations. We can help you comply with investment banking regulations in a commercially oriented and goal-focused manner, providing a tailored approach to IB compliance management with regard to your specific circumstances, including:

• Your commercial objectives
• Your investment products and solutions
• Your business size
• Your technology and human resources
• Your risk appetite
• Your governance structure
• Your client demographics
• Your countries of operation, their applicable laws, and relevant investment banking licensing requirements and regulations, including key aspects such as outsourced providers' monitoring, compliance training, risk management, audit, and assurance.
• Any related compliance obligations, including, but not limited to, investment bankers' obligations under privacy laws, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) laws, fair trading laws, and more.
• Investment bankers' compliance assurance obligations, including internal control design and testing, implementation of compliance calendars, management plans, compliance assurance programs and other second and third-line compliance requirements.
• Any applicable environmental, social, and governance (ESG) compliance obligations.
• Specific operational IB regulations and compliance requirements for investment bankers, including but not limited to:
  • Client due diligence and onboarding
  • Surveillance and monitoring
  • Recordkeeping
  • Conflicts of interest management
  • Regulatory technology (RegTech) integration
  • Internal reporting
  • External reporting
  • Transaction execution
  • Regulatory Filings

 

What Jurisdictions Do Our Compliance Solutions Cover?

Our compliance solutions extend across major financial markets and cover investment bankers' regulation and investment banking licensing requirements in the following jurisdictions:

• IB Compliance in the United States: Where investment bankers are regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) through broker-dealer registration under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, with certain advisory activities also subject to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940.
• IB Compliance in the United Kingdom: Where the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates investment banks under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA) and the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II) framework.
• IB Compliance in Australia: Where the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) oversees investment banking activities under the Corporations Act 2001 through the Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) regime.
• IB Compliance in the European Union: Where investment banks operate under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II) framework. Compliance with MiFID II involves meeting strict requirements on transparency, client protection, and conduct of business rules across EU member states.
• IB Compliance in Singapore: Where the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) regulates investment banks under the Securities and Futures Act (SFA) through the Capital Markets Services (CMS) Licence.
• IB Compliance in Hong Kong: Where the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) regulates investment banks under the Securities and Futures Ordinance (SFO) through the appropriate Type 1 (dealing), Type 4 (advising), and Type 6 (corporate finance) licences.
• IB Compliance in the Cayman Islands: Where investment banks are regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) under the Securities Investment Business Act (SIBA), supporting securities business and investment structures.
• IB Compliance in the British Virgin Islands (BVI): Where investment banks are regulated by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) under the Securities and Investment Business Act (SIBA), offering a favourable regulatory environment for establishing investment funds and other financial entities.
• IB Compliance in New Zealand: Where investment banks are regulated by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) through registration on the Financial Service Providers Register (FSPR) and compliance with wholesale market conduct obligations.
• IB Compliance in Seychelles: Where investment banks are regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) under the Securities Act 2007 through the Securities Dealer Licence.
• IB Compliance in the Isle of Man: Where investment banks are regulated by the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (IOMFSA) under the Financial Services Act 2008.
• IB Compliance in Bermuda: Where investment banks are regulated by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) under the Investment Business Act 2003, offering a well-established legal and regulatory framework.

 

What Types of Investment Bankers Do We Support?

Our IB compliance management solutions cover the following types of investment bankers:

• Corporate Finance Advisory businesses that provide compliance solutions for advising on mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, and financial restructuring.
• Underwriting businesses that ensure compliance with regulations related to underwriting equity and debt securities.
• Sales and Trading businesses that manage compliance for trading desks dealing in equity, fixed income, commodities, and derivatives.
• Asset Management businesses that offer compliance solutions for managing investment portfolios on behalf of clients.
• Private Equity and Venture Capital businesses that manage regulatory compliance for investment banks involved in private equity and venture capital activities.
• Research and Analysis firms that develop compliance frameworks for providing market research and financial analysis.
• Wealth Management businesses that ensure compliance for services offered to high-net-worth individuals and families.

 

Investment Bankers’ Compliance Advisory

Our focus areas include:

• Detailed Compliance Advice: Covering IB compliance management issues across the first, second, and third lines, as well as matters related to effective compliance with financial markets regulations and investment banking licensing requirements.
• Banking Relationships Advice: On risk and compliance issues related to managing and expanding relationships with banks, liquidity providers, and other financial institutions to help you meet their risk appetite requirements, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing requirements, fraud prevention and recall volume expectations, and other compliance-related and operational standards.
• Operational AML Advice: Advising support, onboarding, KYC, operating and other teams on the day-to-day onboarding and support queue management, effective AML/CFT resource allocations, and operational improvements, helping you maintain the overall customer experience and efficiency while remaining compliant with the investment bankers' AML/CFT requirements.
• Operational Compliance Advice: Advising compliance, management, technology, and support teams on the day-to-day compliance with investment banking regulations, focusing on internal processes and critical internal controls for effective IB compliance management.
• Risk Management Advice: Covering risk rating and methodologies, risk assessments, management, and mitigation for various risk types faced by investment bankers, including regulatory, ML/TF, fraud, data protection, and operational risks. We help you safeguard against potential compliance breaches and comply with risk management obligations under investment banking licensing requirements and other applicable laws and regulations.
• Compliance Framework Advice: To help you create or enhance your compliance management framework, identify gaps and areas of improvement, meet the investment bankers' compliance obligations effectively, improve internal governance and reporting, and optimise them for market expansion and growth.
• Investment Bankers' Licensing Advice: We can guide you through the licensing process, help you apply regulations to your specific circumstances and business environment, and meet investment banking licensing requirements to become licensed or maintain it.
• Peer Benchmarking and Best Practices: We can help you benchmark your compliance practices against peers and applicable regulatory compliance guidance, identify areas for improvement and adopt best practices for enhanced compliance.
• Government Agencies Liaison Advice: We provide strategic guidance to senior management and compliance teams on maintaining and managing relationships with external bodies, including regulators, AML/CTF supervisors and law enforcement agencies, focusing on long-term compliance strategies and proactive engagement.
• Specific Investment Bankers' Compliance Issues: We can help you resolve specific risk or compliance issues related to investment banking regulations and compliance obligations, including but not limited to external audits and reviews, reporting, oversight, difficult clients or transactions, expansion challenges, compliance management issues, process optimisation, regulatory challenges you may encounter and more.
• Further information: You can visit our Regulatory Compliance Consulting Solutions page for a comprehensive list of advisory services we offer to investment bankers and other licensed financial institutions, financial services providers, and regulated businesses.

 

 

Reporting and Regulatory Liaison Solutions for Investment Bankers’ Compliance

• Regulator Liaison Management: Providing operational guidance to senior management and compliance teams on managing relationships with regulators, AML/CFT supervisors, police bodies, privacy commissioners, and other government entities. This includes handling requests for information, responding to ad-hoc regulatory inquiries, managing findings from audits and investigations, managing compliance with reporting obligations for investment bankers and more.
• Board and Committee Reporting: Facilitating structured reporting workflows for various committees and board delegates, including risk, compliance, and audit committees, focusing on your current compliance status, deviations from your risk appetite, changes in risk ratings and any operational compliance updates to ensure that governance structures are well-informed and aligned with compliance management practices.
• Compliance Performance Metrics: Developing and presenting comprehensive compliance performance metrics to the board or relevant committees, offering insights into your compliance effectiveness and identifying points for improvement in key compliance areas, including compliance training, fraud prevention, compliance monitoring, risk rating and assessment, controls effectiveness, adherence to your compliance calendar, regulatory technology (RegTech) performance, and more.
• Internal Audit Reporting: We can help you increase the effectiveness of the internal audit to make its findings reflect your actual performance against the investment bankers' compliance obligations. This includes developing tailored methodologies for the auditors, preparing the necessary audit evidence and reviewing audit results. The goal is to ensure that audit procedures and outcomes directly contribute to maintaining and enhancing your compliance status and internal controls' effectiveness.
• AML/CFT Reporting Compliance:  We help with the implementation of effective AML/CFT reporting processes, aligning with specific anti-money laundering regulations for internal oversight and prompt escalation of critical AML issues within your business to help the management receive a clear overview of your AML/CFT compliance status.
• Transactional Reporting: Implementing effective transactional reporting procedures to help with IB compliance management of reporting obligations under various laws and regulations, including submitting SAR, SMR, STR, PTR, TTR, specific reportable matters under the investment banking licensing requirements and other externally reportable transactions and activities.
• Internal Quality Assurance Reporting: While second-line control testing is crucial for complying with investment banking regulations, including investment banking licensing requirements, first-line quality assurance results are equally important for effective risk and compliance management. We help organise effective reporting lines, tailor reporting content to your specific circumstances, products, and team size, and establish a structured approach to responding to reporting outcomes.

 

 

Comprehensive Compliance Management Solution for Investment Bankers

Our compliance management services include, but are not limited to, the following:

• IB Compliance Management Leadership: We act as your Compliance Leads and Compliance Managers, fully managing compliance obligations under the applicable investment banking licensing requirements, laws, regulations, industry codes, and regulatory guidance.
• Second-Line Compliance Management: We offer a full range of second-line compliance assurance solutions, including internal controls testing for operational, compliance, marketing, legal and other risks, as well as managing issue closure control testing and more.
• Supporting the Board in Strategic Compliance Management: Advising on the necessary compliance resourcing, budget, tools, role structuring, and compliance functions' structure to support your specific business objectives within your risk appetite and risk management framework.
• Compliance Project Management: Effectively coordinating between senior management, committees, legal advisers, risk and compliance functions, outsourced providers, and different departments, including product development, technology, customer support, operations, assurance, marketing, and others, to help you successfully implement compliance projects across the business.
• Customised Governance Solutions: Tailoring governance frameworks and mechanisms to fit your specific governance structure and effectively comply with investment banking regulations and other applicable obligations. Whether your business is locally oriented, a start-up, undergoing expansion, part of a multinational group, has a listed parent company or is undergoing restructuring, we tailor the oversight of IB compliance management to your business case.
• Stakeholder Management and Reporting: Reporting to the board, committees, shareholders, regulators and other stakeholders. Providing management and the board with comprehensive compliance reports that cover your compliance with investment bankers' compliance obligations, regulatory development summary, compliance-related data and statistics, internal controls testing outcomes and more. Also covering the status of your specific compliance-related projects and compliance goals, relevant compliance KPIs, and more.
• Compliance Calendar Implementation: We design and implement compliance management programs and calendars, covering such areas of investment bankers' compliance obligations as policy and key document reviews, control testing, risk assessment and reviews, vendor reviewers, user system access reviews, assurance activities and more.
• Managing Customer Onboarding and Due Diligence: Implementing commercially oriented and compliant processes for KYC information collecting, Know Your Business (KYB), ML/TF risk assessment, Pep and Sanctions screening, CDD and EDD, especially for higher ML/TF risk clients, to help you comply with AML/CFT compliance obligations for investment bankers.
• AML Transaction Monitoring and Reporting: Developing and implementing a set of business-specific ML/TF alerts and red flags to detect and report suspicious transactions to comply with the investment bankers' AML requirements without making AML/CFT compliance a hindrance to business.
• Information Requests and AML/KYC Data Sharing: Handling information requests from law enforcement agencies, AML/CTF supervisors, and other relevant AML/CTF designated entities, such as your banking partners and other essential service providers (liquidity providers, finance providers, etc.), ensuring that you are fully supported in all AML/CTF compliance-related communications.
• Business Expansion Support: Providing support for your business expansion objectives, recognising and assessing new risks, developing and implementing controls and mitigations for them, as well as addressing new compliance obligations and putting in place practical tools and systems to manage them.
• Investment Bankers' Operational Compliance: Including but not limited to:
  • On-the-Ground Compliance: Conducting compliance management meetings, organising routine and ad hoc compliance reporting, overseeing mitigations and controls testing, leading adjustments and enhancements to your internal controls and protocols when required.
  • Compliance Process and Operations Building: Developing effective and compliant procedures and processes to implement your policies, support your operations across different teams and mitigate operational, regulatory and other risks.
  • Outsourced Provider Performance Monitoring: Setting up initial due diligence and ongoing review frameworks for your outsourced providers to help you meet the required service standards for outsourcing under various investment bankers' compliance obligations, including investment banking licensing requirements.
  • Incident Management and Reporting: We can help you set up effective processes for incident reporting, escalations, and management at different levels of your business.

 

Investment Bankers’ Compliance Assurance 

Our services include:

• Compliance Assurance Programs:  We can design and implement your compliance assurance program to maintain enhanced oversight of your compliance with both investment banking regulations and your internal compliance and risk appetite thresholds.
• Organisation-Wide Risk Assessments: Helping you focus on the specific risks faced by your business, considering its size, products, client types, jurisdictions of operation, delivery channels, financial institutions you interact with, available technology, and other tools. This includes assessing available mitigations, controls, their effectiveness, residual risk ratings, and the plan to move forward.
• Internal Controls Design: We can develop internal controls for various risk types, including regulatory, fraud, operational, strategic, financial, and other risks. Please visit our Internal Controls Design page for more information. 
• Assurance Testing: We conduct assurance testing to verify that the business complies with its policies, procedures, and investment bankers' compliance obligations, including investment banking licensing requirements. We also assess whether your internal controls effectively mitigate existing risks, including those required to be monitored under the applicable investment banking regulations. This process includes a compliance controls testing report and, if necessary, a gap analysis.
• Compliance Quality Assurance: We go beyond merely meeting regulatory requirements. We focus on evaluating and enhancing your risk and compliance management processes to ensure they align with your current and future goals, business model, your risk analysis, your current client inflow, and more. We also suggest which compliance processes you can use to meet your goals. Here is an example of this service in the AML/CFT area.
• Assurance Reporting: Compiling testing findings and issuing comprehensive compliance assurance reports, which include:

• Identification of any deficiencies or control weaknesses, with clear explanations and potential root cause analysis.
• Recommendations for corrective actions to address identified issues and enhance compliance effectiveness.
• Evaluation of the overall effectiveness of your internal controls and regulatory compliance monitoring program against your desired assurance level.

• Regulatory Inspection Readiness: We can help your business prepare for external audits and regulatory inspections, reducing the risk of adverse findings related to investment bankers' compliance obligations. This includes conducting mock inspections to identify gaps, reviewing documentation and record-keeping to ensure all relevant materials are well-organised and readily accessible, and training staff on their roles in the inspection process. We assist in identifying any missing information and weak points, provide interview preparation, and more to ensure readiness for auditor or regulator review.
• Further information: You can visit our Specialised Compliance Assurance Solutions page for more information.

 

Compliance Remediation Solutions

Our focus areas include:

• Compliance Remediation Advice: Assisting investment bankers in effectively addressing and rectifying compliance issues, from minor breaches to significant regulatory challenges, including warnings and action plans.
• Remediation Plan Development: Following the independent review, we assist in analysing the findings to identify necessary remedial actions. We then support investment bankers in devising a detailed plan outlining these actions for submission to your regulator or an AML/CFT supervisor, ensuring the plan is both actionable and compliant with regulatory expectations.
• Remediation Plan Commitment: We help investment bankers complete their remediation plans and prevent non-compliance recurrence.
• Executive Attestation Support: Our services include assisting senior executives in preparing the required attestations to your regulator. This involves confirming that all necessary remedial actions have been undertaken and adequate compliance measures are in place, supported by comprehensive documentation and evidence. This option covers assistance with the removal of any licensing restrictions.
• Further Information: For more information, you can visit our Compliance Remediation Solutions page.

 

 

Internal Controls Testing and Investment Bankers’ Compliance Management

When it comes to reality versus a nice policy or procedure with nothing else to show for it, it’s often a case where a policy says A, but reality says B. One might ask, why didn’t we test our internal controls before? Or, why didn’t we do it properly? There’s nothing worse than faking compliance instead of actually doing it.

Our second line of compliance defence solutions covers the development, testing, and enhancement of a wide range of controls to ensure compliance with various laws and regulations governing IB compliance obligations.

We go beyond merely quoting investment bankers' regulations or a selection of licensing requirements, then adding Excel sheets painted in different colours as a supposed source of truth with nothing to show for it.

• We test them.
• We link them to your risk appetite and core risk management documentation.
• We provide relevant suggestions and analysis tailored to your business.

Some of our focus areas for testing the investment bankers' compliance requirements include:

 

Regulatory Compliance and Licensing Controls

• Compliance Management: Investment bankers are expected to maintain robust compliance management systems, including conflict of interest management and insider trading prevention measures.
• Liquidity Management: Investment bankers should ensure sufficient liquidity to cover financial obligations and maintain operational stability, particularly during market stress.
• Capital/liquidity Adequacy: Investment bankers should maintain sufficient capital or liquidity to absorb potential losses, aligning with standards such as Basel III and their equivalent in other jurisdictions, and should conduct regular stress testing and scenario analysis to ensure capital adequacy under various market conditions.
• Financial Auditing: Investment bankers should engage qualified auditors to conduct regular financial audits to verify the accuracy of financial statements and ensure regulatory compliance.
• Cross-Border Regulations: Investment bankers may need to comply with diffrent IB compliance regimes and regulations when offering services across different jurisdictions.

 

Operational Oversight Controls

• Outsourcing Oversight: Investment banking firms should maintain control and oversight over outsourced functions to ensure they do not compromise regulatory obligations or information security.
• Risk Management: Businesses engaged in investment banking are expected to establish comprehensive risk frameworks and procedures to identify, assess, and manage operational, market, and credit risks.
• Governance Arrangements: Effective governance structures should be in place to oversee operations and ensure responsible management and decision-making.
• Senior Management Accountability: Investment banking firms should assign specific responsibilities to senior managers to ensure accountability for conduct and competence.
• Operational Resilience: Financial institutions involved in investment banking should ensure the resilience of critical business services by planning for continuity amidst disruptions.
• Technology Risk Management: Investment banking firms should manage technology risks, especially those engaged in electronic trading or reliant on sophisticated IT systems, covering cybersecurity and system reliability requirements.
• Surveillance Technology: Investment banking firms involved in trading others' funds could face or deploy advanced trade surveillance technologies and tools designed to monitor trading activities, detect potential market abuse, and ensure compliance with regulatory standards related to electronic trading and market conduct.
• Climate-Related Financial Risks: Some investment bankers incorporate climate-related financial risks into their risk management frameworks, ensuring that they assess and mitigate risks associated with climate change and environmental factors.

 

Market Integrity and Transparency Controls

• Market Conduct Standards: Investment banking firms should ensure market conduct is fair, transparent, and free from abuse, including market manipulation and insider trading.
• Fair Dealing Principles: Investment bankers are expected to guarantee fair treatment of clients, with clear communication and transparent dealings.
• Conduct and Disclosure Standards:  Investment banking firms should maintain high standards of conduct and ensure that client communications and disclosures are clear, accurate, and effective
• Service Provision Standards: Investment bankers should provide services efficiently, honestly, and fairly.
• Dispute Resolution: Investment banking firms should have mechanisms for resolving client disputes and ensuring client compensation, especially for retail clients.
• Investment Research Independence: Investment bankers are expected to ensure the independence of their investment research, maintaining a clear separation between research and other business activities to prevent conflicts of interest and uphold the integrity of their research output.
• Greenwashing Prevention: Investment banking firms often choose to implement greenwashing prevention measures, ensuring that all claims regarding sustainability and environmental impact are accurate, transparent, and compliant with relevant regulations.

 

Resource Management Controls

• Resource Adequacy: Investment banking firms should maintain adequate financial, technological, and human resources to support effective operations and regulatory compliance.
• Professional Competence: Investment bankers are expected to ensure that staff, particularly those in risk management, compliance, and customer service, possess the necessary skills and knowledge to fulfil their roles.
• Continuing Education and Professional Development: Investment banking firms should ensure that their staff engage in ongoing professional development activities to stay abreast of regulatory changes, industry best practices, and evolving market trends.

 

Reporting Controls

• Regulatory Filings and Reporting: Investment banking firms should submit regular reports to relevant regulatory authorities detailing financial status, trading activities, compliance status, and more.
• Recordkeeping: Investment bankers should maintain accurate records of all business transactions and financial matters for transparency and accountability under various laws and regulations.
• Comprehensive Transaction Reporting: Investment bankers should provide detailed reporting of financial instrument transactions for market abuse monitoring and regulatory oversight.

 

Transactional Controls

• Authorisation and Verification Procedures: Investment banking firms that are AML/CFT regulated should verify client identities and monitor transactions in line with the AML/KYC regulations.
• Conflicts of Interest Management in Transactions: Investment bankers should identify and manage potential conflicts of interest, ensuring decisions are made in the best interests of clients.
• Digital Assets and Cryptocurrencies: Investment banking firms dealing with digital assets and cryptocurrencies should establish specialised controls to manage the unique risks associated with these financial products, including regulatory compliance, custody solutions, and anti-money laundering (AML) safeguards.

 Licensing Solutions for Investment Bankers

• Financial Licensing Application Support: We provide comprehensive support for a wide range of IB licensing applications, including:

• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in Australia: We guide investment banks through the process of obtaining an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) from ASIC, ensuring compliance with the  Corporations Act 2001. and ASIC’s regulatory guidelines.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in Singapore: We assist investment banks in obtaining a Capital Markets Services (CMS) Licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), ensuring adherence to the Securities and Futures Act (SFA).
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in the United States: We provide support for investment banks in obtaining SEC broker-dealer registration and FINRA membership, ensuring compliance with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations and FINRA rules under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, with certain advisory functions also subject to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940.
• Investment Banking Authorisation Requirements in the United Kingdom: We assist investment banks in securing FCA authorisation under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA), ensuring compliance with MiFID II requirements and prudential oversight by the PRA where applicable.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements for the European Union: We advise on authorisation and compliance under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II) across EU member states, helping maintain high standards of transparency, conduct, and client protection.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in Hong Kong: Our team supports investment banks in obtaining the necessary licences from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) under the Securities and Futures Ordinance (SFO), including Type 1 (dealing), Type 4 (advising), and Type 6 (corporate finance) licences.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in the Cayman Islands: We guide investment banks through the process of licensing with the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) under the Securities Investment Business Law, supporting securities business and fund-related structures.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in the British Virgin Islands: We assist investment banks in obtaining licenses from the Financial Services Commission (FSC) under the Securities and Investment Business Act (SIBA), covering securities business and fund establishment activities.
• Investment Banking Registration Requirements in New Zealand: We support investment banks in completing Financial Service Providers (FSPs) registration under the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008, with wholesale investment banking activities subject to fair dealing provisions and regulatory supervision for market conduct.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in Seychelles: We assist investment banks in obtaining a Securities Dealer Licence from the Financial Services Authority (FCA) under the Securities Act 2007.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in the Isle of Man: We help businesses obtain licences from the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (IOMFSA) under the Financial Services Act 2008, covering investment business activities.
• Investment Banking Licensing Requirements in Bermuda: We help investment banks secure licences from the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) under the Investment Business Act 2003, ensuring compliance with the jurisdiction’s robust legal and regulatory framework.
• Other jurisdictions.

• International Governance Alignment: We provide strategic advice on aligning governance models for investment bankers that operate across multiple jurisdictions to meet diverse regulatory expectations while maintaining operational efficiency and regulatory compliance.

 

Policies and Procedures for Investment Bankers’ Compliance Management

• Compliance Policies and Core Documents: We develop, enhance, and implement a set of core policies, manuals, frameworks, and procedures for effective IB compliance management.
• Effective Procedures for Investment Bankers' Compliance Management: We draft and enhance a detailed set of procedures and protocols to meet the distinct needs of your business, focusing on efficient compliance, your business goals, and applicable investment bankers' compliance requirements.
• Examples: These policies and procedures include, but are not limited to:

 

Operational Compliance

• Compliance Management Frameworks
• Compliance Monitoring Programs
• Compliance Calendars and Checklists
• Complaints Handling and Dispute Resolution Policies
• Compliance Training Manuals and Programs, as part of our regulatory compliance training solutions
• Obligation Registers
• Margin Account Negative Balance Write-Off Procedures
• Incident Reporting Policies and Procedures
• Outsourcing Policies and Vendor Risk Management policies as part of our outsourced provider's compliance management solutions
• New Client Account Opening Policies and Procedures, as part of our customer onboarding solutions

 

Governance and Oversight

• Board Charters, Risk, Audit and Compliance Committee Charters, as part of our corporate governance solutions
• Codes of Conduct
• Delegations Registers
• HR Manuals and Policies
• ESG Compliance Policies
• Conflict of Interest Policies
• Whistleblowing Procedures Policies

 

Risk Management

• Risk Management Frameworks as part of our risk management solutions
• Risk Assessment Guidelines and Methodologies
• Internal Control Testing Methodologies
• Risk Registers and specialised risk registers like Health and Safety Risk Registers
• Cybersecurity Risk Management Policies

 

Audit and Assurance

• Compliance Assurance Programs as part of our compliance assurance solutions
• Internal Audit Policies and Programs as part of our internal control testing solutions
• Regulatory Reporting Procedures

 

Client and Market Conduct

• Marketing and Advertising Policy
• Client Communication Policies
• Fair Dealing Policy

 

AML/CFT and Financial Crime Compliance

• AML/CFT Compliance Programs
• AML/CFT Risk Assessment
• Sanctions Compliance policies and procedures
• Fraud Prevention Protocols and Controls as part of our fraud prevention solutions
• ABC Policies

 

Privacy and Data Management

• Client Data Protection Policies
• Recordkeeping Procedures and/or Data Governance Policies as part of our recordkeeping solution
• External Privacy Policies
• Internal Data Protection Compliance Programs

 

Compliance Training and Capacity Building

We focus on practical compliance and the application of training to real-world compliance scenarios and challenges that investment bankers generally face. Our services include:

• Customised Compliance Training Solutions:  Specialised compliance training sessions for various teams, including management, compliance, operations, sales, and customer relations, focusing on investment banking regulations, applying IB compliance management practices to your circumstances, risk awareness, and more.
• Up-to-date Regulatory Compliance Updates:  Keeping compliance officers, managers, CROs, COOs, and other Risk and Compliance team members informed of changes in investment banking licensing requirements and regulations, AML/CFT updates, and changes in regulatory guidance.
• Data Analysis for Effective Compliance Monitoring: Covering training on compliance-related, data-based analysis and its results, including risk rating, internal control adjustments, resource and focus reallocation, and more.
• Workshops on Emerging AML Trends and Red Flags: Updating on new AML trends, red flags, typologies, and AML/CFT requirements for investment bankers. For more information, please visit our AML/CFT Training Solutions page.
• Practical Workshops: Interactive workshops focused on effective and goal-oriented investment bankers' compliance, capacity planning, and resource allocation, covering:

• Investment banking regulations
• Internal and external compliance reporting
• Effective governance over risk and compliance functions
• Organisation-wide risk assessment, risk rating methodologies and the development, management, and testing of corresponding internal controls, including controls testing methodologies and practical techniques.
• Investment bankers' compliance reality, including outsourced provider monitoring, UAV management, incident management, product suitability assessments, advertising and marketing compliance, improvements in the client onboarding journey, transaction monitoring processes, and more.

• Further information: You can visit our Compliance Training Solutions page for more information on the compliance training services we offer to licensed financial institutions and financial service providers.

 

Investment Bankers and AML/CTF Compliance

We offer a complete set of solutions covering investment bankers' anti-money laundering (AML), financial crime and counter-terrorism financing (CTF) compliance. Our solutions include:

• Customer due diligence, screening, and customer onboarding solutions
• Development of transaction monitoring frameworks tailored to investment bankers' specific ML/TF red flags and your business specifications
• AML advisory covering investment bankers' compliance issues and challenges
• Drafting, testing, and updating AML policies and procedures
• AML training and capacity building
• Managed AML compliance solutions for investment banking providers
• Internal and statutory AML audit solutions for investment bankers
• Financial crime prevention framework development focusing on common fraud risks faced by investment bankers
• For more information, please visit our specialised AML Compliance Solutions page for Investment Bankers

 

Investment Bankers’ Compliance Technology Integration

Our services cover compliance aspects concerning the integration of technology for risk and compliance e-management, transactional reporting (where applicable), usage of AI, technology outsourcing, and compliance aspects of third-party risk management for investment bankers, including:

• Needs Assessment
• Compliance Technology Selection: Based on your budget, products, available operational and technical resources, and the applicable investment bankers' compliance obligations
• Implementation assistance across the organisation
• Streamlining operational workflows: For routine compliance tasks like data collection, reporting, and risk assessments
• AML/CFT Compliance Technology: Covering customer digital onboarding, E-KYC, PEP and sanctions screening, transaction monitoring, etc.
• Integration of investment bankers' compliance obligations into an effective CRM system.
• Recordkeeping: Helping you choose and integrate the necessary tools to comply with the record-keeping under various laws and investment banking regulations

 

Data Management and Information Privacy Solutions

• Data Governance and Compliance:  Assisting investment bankers in establishing robust data governance procedures, programs, and protocols that align data collection, storage, and usage practices with relevant data privacy regulations, such as GDPR, CCPA, and other applicable laws. These measures safeguard sensitive client and business information from unauthorised access, breaches, and misuse.
• Privacy Policy Compliance Monitoring: Helping you implement privacy policies that reflect the latest data protection legislation, supported by continuous compliance monitoring tools to maintain the highest data privacy standards.
• Record Maintenance Protocols:  We assist in developing and implementing effective procedures for maintaining necessary records, covering investment bankers' compliance with applicable regulatory reporting standards and reporting requirements.
• Record Availability and Inspection Readiness:  investment banking regulations often require records to be readily available for inspection by regulators, AML/CFT supervisors, tax agencies, and other relevant authorities. This extends to information kept by your outsourced service providers. We help you organise your record-keeping to meet these needs.

 

ISO Standards and Investment Bankers’ Compliance

• Cross-Reference Mapping: Integrating ISO standards such as ISO 27001, ISO 9001, and ISO 22301 into an existing compliance framework and linking specific sections of ISO standards to corresponding procedures in your internal policies and procedures.
• Pre-Audit Preparation: Coordinating ISO controls testing across different parts of the business.
• Leading evidence collection across the different departments to cover relevant compliance areas such as planning, governance, organisational controls, operational controls, technological controls, and physical controls through structured workflows.
• Digital Compliance Repository: Helping you utilise a centralised digital repository for storing all compliance-related documents and evidence, making it easily accessible for audit purposes and compliance verification.
• ISO Audit Liaison:  Acting as a liaison between your team and the auditors, coordinating information requests, and ensuring all the necessary documentation is readily available.
• Post-Audit Remediation Management: We can lead the implementation of your remediation plan and support corrective actions to address all audit findings effectively.

 

Regulatory Change Management Solutions

Empower Your Business with Proactive Regulatory Change Management:

• Stay Ahead of the Curve:  We actively monitor regulatory updates from global financial authorities like MAS, ASIC, FMA, FCA, SEC, and other regulators for investment bankers' compliance changes and updates to evaluate the implications of regulatory changes.
• Impact Assessment and Mitigation Strategies: We analyse the potential impact of regulatory changes on IB compliance management frameworks and operational processes. We then collaborate with you to develop effective mitigation strategies that support continued compliance and minimise disruption.
• Seamless Implementation and Change Management:  We guide investment bankers through necessary process adjustments, update internal policies and procedures, facilitate a smooth transition through regulatory changes, and assist with effective communication with impacted stakeholders.