Head of Transaction Monitoring & Investigations

Alexander Barnes is leading the search for a Financial Crime Lead to own complex FIU investigations and transaction monitoring for a high-growth, regulated fintech operating at scale across payments and consumer financial products. This is a senior, hands‑on FIU role with direct responsibility for complex investigations, transaction monitoring effectiveness, and regulatory escalation in a fast-moving environment. This role owns complex financial crime investigations and the performance of the transaction monitoring framework. Key responsibilities FIU investigations and leadership Lead senior investigators handling complex, multi‑layered Level 3 cases. Conduct deep‑drop investigations across transaction networks, account relationships, and product flows. Identify and assess sophisticated money laundering and financial crime typologies involving layering, structuring, and cross‑border activity. Own the full investigation lifecycle from escalation through to SAR submission. Drive ongoing tuning and optimisation of transaction monitoring scenarios and thresholds. Improve alert quality through segmentation, back‑testing, and reduction of false positives. Partner with data and engineering teams on model performance, detection gaps, and monitoring effectiveness. Ensure monitoring remains aligned to regulatory expectations and evolving risk exposure. Data‑led investigation and intelligence Perform forensic transaction analysis using SQL and large datasets. Incorporate OSINT and external intelligence into investigations where required. Produce management information and trend analysis on emerging risks and typologies. Regulatory execution and governance Manage SAR escalations and submissions, ensuring clear rationale, evidential support, and regulatory timelines are met. Support regulatory reviews, audits, and internal assurance activity. Act as a point of contact for complex FIU matters where escalation is required. Systems and tooling Support enhancements to transaction monitoring platforms and data infrastructure. Work with internal teams on system changes, migrations, or capability upgrades. Integrate specialist tooling where needed to support complex investigations. Coach and develop investigators on advanced investigative techniques. Maintain consistent investigation standards and decision‑making quality across the team. Stay ahead of emerging financial crime risks relevant to fintech and payments businesses. Ideal background 7+ years’ experience in financial crime, with significant time spent in FIU or complex investigations roles. Proven leadership of complex investigations within fintech, payments, or digital financial services. Strong understanding of UK and EU AML frameworks and regulatory expectations. Hands‑on experience optimising transaction monitoring systems and alert quality. Comfortable working directly with data, investigators, and cross‑functional teams. Track record of high‑quality SAR submissions and sound regulatory outcomes. Experience operating in fast‑growth, product‑driven environments. Nice to have CAMS or equivalent certification. Experience with blockchain or digital asset investigations. Exposure to advanced analytics or model‑driven monitoring approaches. #J-18808-Ljbffr