AML and Sanctions Compliance - Principal Associate

Capital One Group; United Kingdom; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

On-site gym

Restaurant in office

Learning Loft

Private medical insurance

Enhanced parental leave

25 days annual leave

Funding for external qualifications up

Job summary

Capital One UK in Nottingham seeks a Principal Associate in Financial Crime to drive our AML work programme and lead a delivery team. You will mentor investigators, define clear standards, and ensure timely, accurate reporting while updating policies to keep them practical and effective.

You will work in a hybrid setup with three office days (Tue-Thu) and two work-from-home days, focusing on audits, CDD processes, and continuous improvement to strengthen controls.

Qualifications

• Experience leading financial crime investigations in high-volume lending environments.
• Strong knowledge of UK Money Laundering Regulations and related acts.
• Proven ability to document decisions and produce high-quality SARs.
• Commitment to continuous professional development with ICA/ACAMS.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor first-line investigators within the Financial Crime Delivery Team.
• Define and uphold standards for AML work and reporting.
• Develop training and capability within the team to improve SAR quality.
• Ensure AML projects and reports are delivered accurately and on time.
• Update policies, procedures, and annual training to be practical.

Skills

Financial crime investigations

Team leadership

Stakeholder management

Regulatory knowledge

Education

Relevant professional qualification

Job description

Our Mission

We’re on a mission to be a force for good in lending. Throughout our almost 30-year history, we’ve consistently been recognised as a great place to work; in 2026, Capital One was officially ranked 9th in the UK’s Best Workplaces™ list. Hear from our team about what it’s like working at Capital One UK.

About the Role

In the FCC team, Principal Associates blend their financial crime expertise with strong stakeholder management to drive our UK AML Work Programme. They are the driving force behind delivering change, keeping projects on track, and ensuring our reporting and controls actually work in practice. Our mission is to keep the bad guys out and make Capital One an unfriendly place for financial criminals.

What You’ll Do

• Overseeing our Financial Crime Delivery Team Mentor and grow: Provide clear leadership, and advisory support for our first-line investigators.
• Set the standard: Define clear standards so everyone knows exactly what success looks like.
• Develop our best people: Actively support training and development for our first-line teams so we have the best performing, expert teams.
• Driving the AML Work Programme Keep the wheels turning: Ensure key AML projects and reports are delivered accurately and on time.
• If it isn’t documented, it didn’t happen: Take ownership of updating policies, procedures, and annual training so they are practical and fit for purpose.
• Audit support: Run necessary assessments and partner closely with the MLRO to navigate AML/CTF audits.
• Managing Suspicious Activity (SARs) Make the right call: Work alongside the MLRO to ensure all suspicious activity decisions are approved by the book.
• Raise the bar: Use Quality Assurance as a coaching tool, providing actionable feedback to improve our overall SAR quality.
• Stay ahead of the curve: Keep sharp on the latest NCA guidance and translate those updates into practical advice for the team and the wider business.
• Strengthening the Control Environment Maintain the standard: Keep our AML requirements and test plans fully aligned with UK standards.
• Fix what’s broken: Take the lead on resolving risk events and making sure audit findings are properly closed out.
• Look at the big picture: Dig into first line functions to ensure their frontline AML checks are comprehensive and effective.
• Build trust: Foster the kind of relationships where stakeholders come to you proactively when a control isn’t working.
• Test the defenses: Execute 2nd-line assurance to catch vulnerabilities before they become actual problems.
• Find the bad guys: Oversee and provide credible challenge of our Customer Due Diligence processes.
• Handling the Complex Cases The final set of eyes: Perform secondary QA checks (QA on the QA) to maintain an exceptionally high standard.
• Provide clarity: Step into complex review meetings to help untangle difficult cases and guide the team to a confident decision.

The skills and experience you’ll need

• Know the landscape: Bring an understanding of the UK financial crime regulatory framework to set the compliance standard (knowledge of the Money Laundering Regulations, JMLSG, and the Proceeds of Crime Act are essential).
• Lead from the front: Proven experience conducting and leading teams through end-to-end financial crime investigations in high-volume consumer credit environments.
• Make defensible calls: Confidently execute well-documented investigation decisions to ensure consistent submission of high-quality SARs.
• Sharpen your edge: Maintain a strong appetite for continuous learning and professional development through accredited industry bodies (e.g., ICA, ACAMS).

Where and how you’ll work

This is a permanent position based in our Nottingham office. We embrace a hybrid approach to work. You’ll spend three days a week in the office (Tuesday-Thursday), with Monday and Friday being dedicated work-from-home days. Our offices are designed to inspire and support you. At our Nottingham head office, you’ll find an on-site gym, restaurant and dedicated Learning Loft.

What’s in it for you

We invest in the growth of our people alongside our business. You will have extensive opportunities to learn and develop your career, including access to up to £5,000 in funding for external qualifications. In addition to career development, our comprehensive benefits package is designed to grow with you, ensuring your wellbeing is prioritised at every stage of your career.

• Wealth & Future: Competitive pension and performance-based bonus schemes
• Holidays: Start with 25 days of annual leave, increasing with tenure. Need more? You have the option to buy 5 additional days.
• Health: Access premium care through our private medical insurance.
• Family Support: We champion your milestones with enhanced parental leave.

A full list of our benefits is available here.

What you should know about how we recruit

We pride ourselves on hiring the best people, not the same people. Building diverse and inclusive teams is the right thing to do and the smart thing to do. We want to work with top talent: whoever you are, whatever you look like, wherever you come from. We know it’s about what you do, not just what you say. That’s why we make our recruitment process fair and accessible. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging at our core. We empower our associates to do great work by creating an inclusive culture—one that values diverse perspectives, fosters collaboration and encourages innovative ideas—and a place where associates of all backgrounds can thrive by bringing their most authentic selves to work. We call this our Culture of Belonging, and it rests at the heart of our business. Our associate-led Business Resource Groups were created to help support our diverse population and include over 10 groups across our offices. Because each Business Resource Group is as unique as the population it serves, they offer a range of activities, networking opportunities, special events and learning programmes to associates.

At Capital One, we’re building a leading information-based technology company. Still founder-led by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Richard Fairbank, Capital One is on a mission to help our customers succeed by bringing ingenuity, simplicity, and humanity to banking. We measure our efforts by the success our customers enjoy and the advocacy they exhibit.