Head of Sanctions – GCC

UBL UAE; Dubai; On-site; AED 300,000 - 540,000; Full time

Job summary

UBL UAE invites applications for Head of Sanctions – GCC to lead the bank's sanctions compliance framework across the GCC, ensuring effective management of sanctions risks in line with Group policies and UN/international regimes.

The role covers onboarding, payments, trade finance, correspondent banking, and ongoing customer activity, with oversight of screening, investigations, and governance. GCC market expertise and leadership experience are essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Law, Finance, Compliance, Business, or a related discipline; relevant professional certification is preferred.
• Minimum 12–15 years of relevant banking/financial services experience, with substantial experience in Sanctions, AML, or Financial Crime Compliance.
• Strong GCC market and regulatory experience with practical knowledge of sanctions requirements across GCC jurisdictions.
• Extensive experience in sanctions screening, investigations, transaction screening, customer screening, sanctions advisory, and risk assessment.
• Strong knowledge of UN and major international sanctions regimes and applicable local regulatory requirements.
• Experience covering corporate banking, trade finance, payments, correspondent banking, and cross-border transactions is highly desirable.
• Proven leadership experience managing sanctions/compliance teams and complex regulatory matters.
• Strong analytical, investigative, decision-making, communication, and stakeholder-management skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead the GCC Sanctions Compliance function, ensuring consistent implementation of Group sanctions policies, procedures, controls, and risk appetite.
• Develop and maintain an effective sanctions risk management framework covering customer, payment, transaction, trade, counterparty, and beneficial-owner screening.
• Provide expert sanctions advice and independent challenge to Business, Operations, Compliance, Risk, Legal, and senior management.
• Oversee the investigation and disposition of sanctions alerts, potential matches, escalations, and complex sanctions cases, ensuring appropriate documentation and governance.
• Assess sanctions risks arising from high-risk jurisdictions, customers, counterparties, ownership structures, products, sectors, and cross-border transactions.
• Provide sanctions guidance on trade finance, correspondent banking, payments, corporate banking, and commercial banking activities.
• Ensure appropriate escalation and regulatory reporting of potential sanctions breaches and material compliance concerns.
• Monitor changes in sanctions regimes, regulatory expectations, enforcement actions, and emerging risks, and ensure timely implementation of required control enhancements.
• Oversee the effectiveness of sanctions screening systems, scenarios, thresholds, data quality, and related controls.
• Lead sanctions risk assessments, control testing, quality assurance, audits, regulatory reviews, and remediation programmes.
• Prepare sanctions-related management information, risk reports, and updates for senior management and relevant governance committees.
• Deliver sanctions awareness and training and provide guidance to relevant business and operational teams.
• Lead, manage, and develop the GCC Sanctions team, ensuring strong technical capability, consistent decision-making, and effective succession planning.
• Maintain effective engagement with Group Compliance, regulators, auditors, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Promote a strong sanctions compliance culture while enabling legitimate business within the Bank's approved risk appetite.

Education

Bachelor's degree in Law/Finance/Compliance/Business

Professional certification (preferred)

Job description

The Head of Sanctions – GCC will lead and oversee the Bank's sanctions compliance framework across the GCC, ensuring effective management of sanctions risks in line with Group policies, applicable local regulatory requirements, UN sanctions, and relevant international sanctions regimes. The role will provide expert oversight across customer onboarding, payments, trade finance, correspondent banking, and ongoing customer and transaction activity.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the GCC Sanctions Compliance function, ensuring consistent implementation of Group sanctions policies, procedures, controls, and risk appetite.
• Develop and maintain an effective sanctions risk management framework covering customer, payment, transaction, trade, counterparty, and beneficial-owner screening.
• Provide expert sanctions advice and independent challenge to Business, Operations, Compliance, Risk, Legal, and senior management.
• Oversee the investigation and disposition of sanctions alerts, potential matches, escalations, and complex sanctions cases, ensuring appropriate documentation and governance.
• Assess sanctions risks arising from high-risk jurisdictions, customers, counterparties, ownership structures, products, sectors, and cross-border transactions.
• Provide sanctions guidance on trade finance, correspondent banking, payments, corporate banking, and commercial banking activities.
• Ensure appropriate escalation and regulatory reporting of potential sanctions breaches and material compliance concerns.
• Monitor changes in sanctions regimes, regulatory expectations, enforcement actions, and emerging risks, and ensure timely implementation of required control enhancements.
• Oversee the effectiveness of sanctions screening systems, scenarios, thresholds, data quality, and related controls.
• Lead sanctions risk assessments, control testing, quality assurance, audits, regulatory reviews, and remediation programmes.
• Prepare sanctions-related management information, risk reports, and updates for senior management and relevant governance committees.
• Deliver sanctions awareness and training and provide guidance to relevant business and operational teams.
• Lead, manage, and develop the GCC Sanctions team, ensuring strong technical capability, consistent decision-making, and effective succession planning.
• Maintain effective engagement with Group Compliance, regulators, auditors, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Promote a strong sanctions compliance culture while enabling legitimate business within the Bank's approved risk appetite.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Law, Finance, Compliance, Business, or a related discipline; relevant professional certification is preferred.
• Minimum 12–15 years of relevant banking/financial services experience, with substantial experience in Sanctions, AML, or Financial Crime Compliance.
• Strong GCC market and regulatory experience with practical knowledge of sanctions requirements across GCC jurisdictions.
• Extensive experience in sanctions screening, investigations, transaction screening, customer screening, sanctions advisory, and risk assessment.
• Strong knowledge of UN and major international sanctions regimes and applicable local regulatory requirements.
• Experience covering corporate banking, trade finance, payments, correspondent banking, and cross-border transactions is highly desirable.
• Proven leadership experience managing sanctions/compliance teams and complex regulatory matters.
• Strong analytical, investigative, decision-making, communication, and stakeholder-management skills.
• High level of integrity, independence, confidentiality, and professional judgement.