Anti-Money Laundering Specialist
Who is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS)?
Business operations for firms have become more susceptible to money laundering, since this crime is occurring on a global scale. It is hard for financial institutes to establish and maintain industry standards without the risk of financial fraud. However, this risk can be prevented by firms with the help of a skilled AML professional who can detect ML/TF activities within the organization and aid the global financial system at large. A Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) is an appropriate candidate capable of preventing fraud within an organization by tracking the illicit funds which are subject to a series of complex transfers to disguise their original source. The CAMS certification, which is authorized by the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS), helps to equip the expert with knowledge regarding the prevention and detection of money laundering-related crimes. The ACAMS is a highly valuable and professional credential for AML specialists that is globally recognized by financial institutions.
Is an Anti-Money Laundering Certification Required to Become an AML Specialist?
The ACAMS credential/Anti-Money Laundering Certification is extremely valuable for an AML Specialist. After all, it offers them expert knowledge about AML/CFT fraudulent activities and gives them an insight into money laundering regulations practiced around the world. Further, the certification is not just based on US guidances and policies, as it currently represents more than 175 countries, which includes their bank compliance officers, law enforcement agents, govt regulators, and so forth. The guidance for training in order to gain the certification includes the European Union Directives, the UN Security Council, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, etc. This depicts how various recommendations, regulatory requirements, and policies exist in the world of financial crime, and ways to prevent it beyond physical borders.
The global economy requires that a financial professional must know the difference in AML legislations across different countries, including the regulatory requirements that are followed by the banks and institutions in those places. The professionals should also know if there is a difference in the processes followed by big or small organizations/FIs with international customers. ACAMS or the Anti-Money Laundering Certification aims to provide knowledge about international AML/CFT regimes and reforms, and how to prevent them. The CAMS credential is important for professionals in all financial organizations to learn the AML standards and practices in order to work with global companies. The firms should be able to establish and implement the appropriate training that is required for managing/mitigating risk throughout the company. CAMS credentials can help financial professionals to connect with workers around the world in order to combat money laundering together.
How Can an AML Specialist Acquire the Money Laundering Certificate?
AML professionals can gain their money laundering certificate by studying toward the Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) credential, as it’s the benchmark that is recognized by FIs, law officials, and governments worldwide. The Advanced CAMS certificates, such as CAMS Audit, CAMS FCI & CAMS Risk Management, offer a higher-level education and training to equip financial professionals to meet the firm’s regulatory requirements, be it as part of an internal investigation, risk management, or auditing. The CAMS certificate can define a professional’s value to their firm and prove their determination to protect the organization’s financial system.
In order to avail the money laundering certificate, AML professionals are required to take the examination for CAMS. To be eligible for the Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist test, the person should have ACAMS membership, as well as a total of 40 credits in completed studies, professional experience, and certification for training in the AML field. The individual can only apply for the membership when they have earned the necessary number of credits.
The CAMS exam is updated as per the latest emerging financial threats and possible solutions to mitigate those risks. It helps to showcase the potential of a professional with a firm understanding of money laundering laws, different regulatory frameworks, operations, and trends practiced internationally. The examination includes multiple-choice questions that cover various topics on the methods of money laundering, risks related to ML/TF, standards and processes of preventing AML/CFT, etc. The individual should be knowledgeable about the recent AML trends, know the basics of different acts and operations, and should be thorough with the functions related to FATF, FSRB, Basel Committee, etc. The minimum percentage required to pass the examination is 75%.
How will the AML Certification Benefit the Financial Firm?
Money laundering is a worldwide threat to all financial institutions and the global economy. So, the knowledge of an expert professional, who can understand the inner workings of financial crime, is required. The CAMS credential helps to offer the AML expertise that is required by a professional who can, in turn, become a valuable asset to international institutes and prove his/her knowledge to the financial industry. With money laundering and terrorist financing techniques becoming more and more challenging in nature, FIs are in need of a skilled and knowledgeable AML Specialist. The specialist with AML certification can benefit the firm with their training about how to detect, investigate, and prevent financial crime in financial organizations. AML certifications such as ACAMS benefit institutions globally as well as locally in order to provide effective business solutions and operations that keep the firm in regulatory compliance.
Apart from providing the certification, ACAMS also collaborates with institutions worldwide to provide education on global AML regulations and how to comply with them. It educates the firms on how to maintain their compliance program and covers training for the whole company on topics related to money laundering activities. The ACAMS programs can be taught across nations, as they provide online training that is efficient and quick for all the team members.
There are various benefits of having the CAMS certificate, as the training of the individual allows them to focus on company-wide compliance in order to prevent any financial threats. The certification allows the professional to establish and implement processes and policies within an organization that can prevent money laundering and terrorist financing. The certification also promotes the development of sound financial practices that eradicate money laundering practices around the globe.
The CAMS credential promotes international standards and practices that can help detect, investigate, and prevent money laundering. It helps to provide knowledge to the financial professionals in organizations about AML standards and strategies, including ways to practice them. The credentials allow the firm to implement the country’s AML legislation, which can sometimes be challenging, and further oversee the development of the institution’s compliance program. The firms can take the help of a certified AML professional in order to keep the employees up-to-date about recent AML trends and any developments in the prevention of financial fraud.
Read More: About the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) organization.
Read More: What is the role of a Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO)?
Read More: Which countries are stated in the FATF Countries List?
Leave a Comment
How Criminals Launder COVID Funds via Online Investment Platforms
Fraud targeting governments’ pandemic-related welfare programs have seen criminals exploiting these schemes ever since countries started helping their citizens and businesses. If reports are correct, fraudsters benefit immensely from the US governm...
Crowdfunding: Yet Another Unconventional Means to Launder Money
Having transformed many ideas into profitable businesses, crowdfunding, a new-gen investment trend enabled by the internet, has become the first resort for many entrepreneurs and small businesses. There are various crowdfunding platforms in play, inv...
The Crackdown on Shell Companies and the Role of Technology
The Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) 2020, enacted as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 2021 of the US in January this year, had many key provisions to take the Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT)...
Tookitaki Powers AI-Driven Anti-Money Laundering Solution Using HPE GreenLake
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) announced a key collaboration with Tookitaki to provide a new offering designed for banks and financial institutions across Asia-Pacific. The new offering delivers Tookitaki’s artificial intelligence (AI) powered ...
AMLA 2020: 8 Key Provisions that Financial Institutions Required to Know
The US Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 2021 on January 1, 2021, addressing a variety of pressing concerns related to the nation’s security. The act included a number of reforms related to the country’s response to an...
The Rising Case for RegTech to Address AML Risks Amid COVID-19
Emerged as a subset of FinTech, the Regulatory Technology (RegTech) industry has now gone more mainstream, thanks to regulators and industry practitioners. Recently, there have been many pro-RegTech communique and reports, highlighting that the COVID...
Hakrinbank Selects Tookitaki to Ensure Sustainable Financial Compliance Monitoring
Tookitaki announced a partnership with Hakrinbank, a leading South American bank based in Suriname, to fortify its Anti-Money Laundering (AML) detection and alerts management capabilities. To improve its legacy system and augment its ability to bett...
Breaking Barriers: 5 Key Insights on RegTech Adoption
HKMA in a report shared comprehensive hands-on experience and insights from respondents to better understand the factors and dependencies affecting AML/CFT Regtech adoption. The regulator collaborated with 10 mature RegTech adopters to build out a co...
How to Address Present-day Sanctions Screening Pain Points with AI
Sanctions risk of financial institutions is evolving in line with the global social, economic and political changes. As seen in recent news, governments across the globe are increasingly relying on sanctions as an important measure for political fore...
Tookitaki Got Selected for FinTech Program: Asia meets Tokyo
Tookitaki has been listed among 8 Fintech startups in Asia for FinTech Program: Asia meets Tokyo, an accelerator launched by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG). We have been selected for our anti-money laundering (AML) solution having a unique m...
AML Alert Management: How AI can Augment Your Compliance Efficiency
The financial sector is facing one monster of a problem at the moment. As today’s financial institutions deal with millions of daily transactions, several thousands of routine financial transactions are being flagged every month, leading to many un...
Tookitaki Recognised for Innovative Use of AI & Machine Learning
Tookitaki has won the Regtech Award for AI & Machine Learning and was highly commended in the solutions category for AML/CTF Compliance, in the 3rd Regulation Asia Awards for Excellence 2020 in an online ceremony on 15 December 2020. Tookita...
Money Laundering via Cryptocurrencies: All You Need to Know
Technological advancements have given criminals faster and safer options to wash their ill-gotten money. There is no doubt that cryptocurrencies are very useful technology innovation that helps individuals and institutions access financial products a...
CNA 938 radio interviews Tookitaki Co-founder Jeeta Badopadhyay
Tookitaki Co-founder and COO Jeeta Bandopadhyay was named among the Singapore 100 Women in Tech (SG100WIT) List in September 2020. A collaboration between the Singapore Computer Society (SCS), IMDA, SG Women in Tech and Mediacorp, the inaugural SG100...
Need for New Customer Risk Rating Models: Not All Customers Are Created Equal
Being estimated at between US$800 billion to US$2 trillion every year, money laundering is a serious problem for the global economy. While regulators and financial institutions are working hard to prevent and reduce the crime, launderers are becoming...
Is AML Compliance Heading for a New Normal in the Age of Digital Payments?
Increased digitization has influenced various businesses and brought in a paradigm shift in the way they create business models and approach growth opportunities. Moving away from conventional transaction modes such as cash and checks, banks and FIs ...
Excel to AI: How Reconciliation Tools Evolve for Better
In the world of finance, reconciliation is the process of comparing two related sets of records or two accounts at the end of a specific accounting period to find out if account balances are matching in both records. Periodic reconciliation of accoun...
Lessons Not Well Learned: 2020 AML Fines Cross 2019 Total
If research is to be believed, institutions across the globe have not done enough in the anti-money laundering (AML) compliance area. Data from consultancy Duff & Phelps revealed that AML fines in the first six months of 2020 reached US$706 milli...
Exploring AML Risks in COVID-Era and the Ways to Address Them
The world continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic and the crisis it brought in is unprecedented in the history of humankind. While there are a number of pandemic-related factors contributing to the expected crisis with financial services, financial...
AML Amid COVID-19: Watch out for These FBI-listed Fraud Schemes
There has been a rise in the number of cybercrimes and fraud schemes across the globe ever since the proliferation of the COVID-19 pandemic. Criminals, in general, are taking advantage of people’s scare, helplessness, and the need for immediate fin...
OCC Spring Risk Perspective: 5 Takeaways on Compliance Risk
Despite its general strength, the US federal banking system is apparently susceptible to the ongoing economic weakness caused by the rampant spread of coronavirus. Earlier this month, The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) published i...
How Criminals Used COVID-19 Sales Pitch to Defraud, Launder Money
As the world is working hard to contain the spread of the COVID-19, criminals continue to take advantage of the pandemic. They are devising sophisticated methods to defraud people and launder the criminal proceeds using the financial system. The late...
5 Top Myths and Facts about AI Implementation in AML Programs
We are more confirmed about the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to transform lives and businesses now. There are countless possible applications of AI and machine learning at present, and we see and hear exciting ways how these modern technolog...
Typology Repository Management: Solving AML Problems Via Collective Intelligence and Continuous Learning
Despite its general strength, the US federal banking system is apparently susceptible to the ongoing economic weakness caused by the rampant spread of coronavirus. Earlier this month, The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) published i...
Money Laundering Amid COVID-19: What Regulators Across Globe Say
As the world continues to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, there are reports that criminals are taking advantage of the difficult situation. They are seizing the moment to proliferate their criminal activities, earn undue profits and transfer of ...
How will Art Cease to Be a Preferred Money Laundering Vehicle?
Money laundering via high-end art and antiquities is not new yet it is difficult to detect. Art-related money laundering amounts to about US$3 billion per year, according to this blog, quoting the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Criminals o...
Beware! Money Mules in Demand amid COVID-19. Here’s an Effective Cure
If reports are to be believed, cybercrooks are taking advantage of the COVID-19 situation. They are targeting people who were laid off or working from home due to the pandemic to work for them as money mules. For those who are new to the term, money ...
Roundtable Rewind: Embracing Next-gen Tech & Collaboration Key to Sustainability
As a regtech player with a vision to enable sustainable compliance programs in financial institutions, Tookitaki organized a first-of-its-kind industry roundtable in Charlotte, NC, USA to discuss opportunities to innovate current AML programs and mee...
Tookitaki Appoints Industry Veteran Joe Friscia as Advisor
Tookitaki Holding Pte. Ltd. appointed industry veteran Joe Friscia, former President of NICE Actimize and BAE Systems as Advisor to the Company’s Advisory Board. Joe brings over 25 years’ extensive experience in the financial crime and enterpris...
Tookitaki Raises Another US$11.7 million in Series A; Closes Round at US$19.2 million
– by Abhishek Chatterjee, Founder & CEO The Tookitaki team and I are excited to announce that we have raised an additional US$11.7 million in Series A funding, taking the total investment in the round to US$19.2 million. The current round w...
30 Years of FATF: Notable Facts About Global AML Watchdog
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the intergovernmental body formed in 1989 to combating money laundering, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Since its inception, the global agency played a key role in identifying and preventing the...
Tookitaki Joins Aite Financial Crime Forum as Sponsor
Technological advances have fundamentally changed the operational landscape of financial institutions. However, there are also new risks emerging in forms of sophisticated financial frauds and complex money laundering patterns. These risks can signif...
Will Machine Learning Replace Compliance Professionals?
The impact of modern technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning on job security has been a widely discussed topic today. Of course, AI has advanced very quickly in the last few years and evolved to outperform humans in a n...
6 Most Prevalent Cyber-Laundering Methods in APAC
Despite being a medium to exchange information in real-time and with scale, the Internet is being misused in several ways. Among the slew of financial crimes facilitated by the Internet, money laundering draws importance due to its gigantic size and ...
ABA Regulatory Compliance Conference: 10 Sessions You Can’t Miss
The 2019 edition of the American Bankers Association (ABA) Regulatory Compliance Conference is a few more days away. Organized by the Washington, D.C.-based trade association, the conference is touted as the “one-stop shop to discuss today’s—an...
Tookitaki AMLS Wins SBR Technology Excellence Award 2019
Tookitaki’s Anti-Money Laundering Suite (AMLS), an end-to-end machine learning-powered transaction monitoring and names screening solution, has bagged the inaugural Singapore Business Review Technology Excellence Award 2019 in the category R...
Watchdogs Grow Optimistic about AI Prospects at Banks
Proper regulation of banking operations is important as any failure in the banking system would affect the wider economy. Therefore, banking is one of the most regulated industries across the globe. Financial regulators ensure that services to the cu...
Pitfall of Black Box AI at Banks: Explaining Your Models to Regulators
The use cases of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in front-office, middle-office and back-office activities at banks are growing slowly but steadily. The major areas of AI play include customer service (virtual assistants, chatbots, ...
AI for Regulatory Compliance at Banks: 4 Assessments Before You Okay the Solution Proposal
Banking is one of the industries where artificial intelligence and machine learning find their applications at a rapid pace. Regulatory compliance within banking is an area which has become a costly and inefficient affair due to complex and never-sta...
We Believe in Innovation, the Key to Survival and Growth
“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” -Steve Jobs What comes on the top of your screen when you google the meaning of the word innovation is – the introduction of something new and relevant such as a new idea, method o...
Compliance Functions in Need of a Technological Overhaul. Can Machine Learning be the Game-Changer?
McKinsey in its latest compliance benchmarking survey found that compliance function at financial institutions has reached “an inflection point” and current compliance standards are in an “inchoate state”. The firm has suggested five critical...
Tookitaki Raises US$7.5 mn Series A from Global VCs to Transform Regulatory Compliance
Tookitaki, a regulatory technology company that aims to enable financial institutions to develop sustainable compliance programs, has raised US$7.5 million in Series A round. The round was co-led by London-based Illuminate Financial, an early-stage e...
From Wachovia to Danske Bank: Biggest Money Laundering Cases in Recent Times
Money laundering – the criminal activity of processing criminal proceeds to disguise their origin – is one of the gravest problems faced by the global economy, and its size is growing rapidly. It is estimated that 2- 5% of the global GDP, or US$8...
A Modern Approach to Address the Reconciliation Challenges of Financial Services
Reconciliation of transactions is deemed critical for the smooth running of every financial institution. The speed and accuracy of data reconciliation can distinguish a successful institution from its counterparts. The process is primarily used to id...
Busting a Myth: Compliance Officer’s Job is All About Risk
Regulatory compliance has become a dreadful task for banks after regulators across the globe set stricter norms in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis in an effort to prevent financial crimes such as money laundering. Rules have been changed t...
SocGen Goes Next-Gen with Tookitaki Reconciliation Suite
Société Générale leveraged Tookitaki’s Reconciliation Suite to automate the bank’s existing break reconciliation system. Key Challenges Addressed The bank’s finance department was unable to handle new breaks unless code is updated. Current ...
Attending ACAMS Conference in Singapore? Tookitaki Awaits You with Its Disruptive AML Solution
“In today’s era of volatility, there is no other way but to re-invent. The only sustainable advantage you can have over others is agility, that’s it.”- Jeff Bezos Singapore is hosting ACAMS’ 11th Annual AML & Financial Crime Conference ...
MAS’ Stress on Transaction Monitoring for Effective AML/CFT Compliance and Machine Learning is the Answer
Singapore is known for its top-notch AML/CFT regime created through up-to-date legislation, stringent policy and uncompromising supervision to safeguard against the abuse of the city state’s financial system for criminal activities. The country’s...
Mifid II and the Pressing Need for a New Reconciliation Approach
The financial services industry in the EU has been confused with the introduction of a revamped version of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (Mifid II). The ambitious regulatory reforms that took almost seven years to be materialized wer...
Is Automated Reconciliation Next to Impossible in Today’s Complex Financial World?
The 2008 global financial crisis and fairly new regulatory requirements like Basel III asked financial institutions (FIs) to cut operating costs and adopt a lean operations structure, pushing FIs to rethink on current reconciliation measures. Most of...
Modern Tech to Reshape US AML Compliance with Regulators’ Recent Handshake
George Bernard Shaw once said: “Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” The past week has seen a significant change of mind from financial regulators in the US in their ardent attempt to combat and prevent financial crimes, e...
Skills Development: We Have Talents and We Strive to Multiply Them
“Mastery lies on an infinite continuum, and as a result, we will never reach the end. We can, however, see to it that we are as far along that continuum as our circumstance allows.” ― Chris Matakas Having continuous learning as one of its core...
It’s Our Fourth Founding Day; Taking a Pause to Cherish Our Simple but Awesome Journey
Today, as we step into our 4th year of foundation, I feel proud and honored to be leading Tookitaki that has been successful in creating added value to all its stakeholders. I was never a CEO and Tookitaki is my first company. I had the passion and d...
Tookitaki Expands into the US with New Office in Charlotte
SINGAPORE, Sept. 24, 2018: Tookitaki Holding Pte Ltd, a leading regulatory technology company, is pleased to announce the official opening of its North American office in Charlotte, NC, in the United States. This new location will serve as the comp...
5 Methods That Modern Money Launderers Use To Beat Detection
Society prepares the crime, the criminal commits it. DID YOU KNOW? Every year, an estimated amount in the range of US$800 billion-US$2 trillion (2-5% of global GDP) is being laundered globally Regulators across the globe imposed US$1.7 billion in fin...
Risk Management Conference: Positive Vibes from All Corners
The Risk Management Association’s (RMA) premier annual event, the Risk Management Conference, came to an end on 6 November, and Tookitaki had the privilege to attend the event which we believe was a success in a number of ways. As a modern-era tec...
Singapore Fintech Festival: Tookitaki to showcase advanced machine learning solutions in financial services
Singapore is assured of the Fintech world’s unwavering attention next week, as the city state, is hosting this year’s Fintech Festival during 12-16 November. Touted as the world’s largest platform for the global FinTech community, the event att...
The RMA Clarion Call to Address Risks and the Tookitaki Way
Risk officers, doing your best today is good while preparing hard for tomorrow is extraordinary. Risk management at banks has become difficult due to operational and regulatory changes. The Risk Management Association’s (RMA) premier annual event, ...
Typology Repository Management: Solving AML Problems Via Collective Intelligence and Continuous Learning
Despite its general strength, the US federal banking system is apparently susceptible to the ongoing economic weakness caused by the rampant spread of coronavirus. Earlier this month, The US Office of...
MAS’ Stress on Transaction Monitoring for Effective AML/CFT Compliance and Machine Learning is the Answer
Singapore is known for its top-notch AML/CFT regime created through up-to-date legislation, stringent policy and uncompromising supervision to safeguard against the abuse of the city state’s financi...
Singapore Fintech Festival: Tookitaki to showcase advanced machine learning solutions in financial services
Singapore is assured of the Fintech world’s unwavering attention next week, as the city state, is hosting this year’s Fintech Festival during 12-16 November. Touted as the world’s largest platfo...
