Vice President, Compliance (KYC)

Over the last 20 years, Ares’ success has been driven by our people and our culture. Today, our team is guided by our core values – Collaborative, Responsible, Entrepreneurial, Self-Aware, Trustworthy – and our purpose to be a catalyst for shared prosperity and a better future. Through our recruitment, career development and employee-focused programming, we are committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive work environment where high-performance talent of diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives can build careers within this exciting and growing industry.

Job Description

The Ares Compliance Department oversees and manages Ares’ global regulatory compliance and ethics program. Under the leadership of the Global Chief Compliance Officer, the Compliance Department is comprised of functionally aligned teams that operate collaboratively based on the Firm’s overall structure and include the following:

• Investment Advisory, which oversees implementation of the Advisers Act, regulatory reporting, and administers the Code; 

• Control Room, Conflicts and Trading, which oversees the regulations and guidelines applicable to trade surveillance, the handling of Material Non-Public Information, and conflicts;

• Marketing and Distribution, focusing on global marketing regulations as well as compliance for Ares’ registered broker-dealers;

• Regulated Funds, which oversees the compliance for advised and sub-advised registered funds and public companies;

• Financial Crime Prevention, which develops and administers Ares’ global program for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing, economic sanctions, and anti-corruption (together, the “FCP Program”); and

• European and Asia Pacific compliance, which oversees region-specific compliance programs and regulatory matters.

Ares is seeking an experienced, highly organized and proactive Vice President to join the Financial Crime Prevention team focusing on counterparty Know Your Customer (“KYC”) processes and diligence. This individual will be responsible for managing the team while also performing KYC and assisting in the development, design and update of the related KYC policies and procedures.

Reporting relationships

Reports to: Principal, Financial Crime Prevention

Primary functions and responsibilities

The Vice President will play a critical role in the supervision, management and execution of the global KYC framework as well as managing a team performing KYC and providing oversight of third-party fund administrators and outsourced services providers supporting the KYC process.  They will be primarily responsible for supervising the team, managing the financial crime risks identified through the KYC process, including evaluating documentation, screening results, and other information obtained regarding counterparties’ structure, business activities, source of wealth and funds, and other risk factors considering the Firm’s risk tolerance and relevant jurisdictional requirements.
 

Specific responsibilities will include but are not limited to:

• Conduct comprehensive counterparty reviews, ensuring thorough analysis of all relevant documentation and KYC  information

• Manage a team of professionals including acting as a subject-matter expert and thought leader, providing day-to-day guidance to the team performing KYC, assessing and communicating financial crime risks to senior management, and overseeing the quality of work product

• Provide expertise in counterparty transactions, assessing financial crime risks associated with these deals and ensuring compliance with the Firm’s risk tolerance and jurisdictional requirements.

• Provide oversight of third-party fund administrators and other service providers supporting the KYC process

• Directly liaise with investment professionals, portfolio company representatives, internal deal counsel, external counsel, fund administrators and Ares internal constituents to ensure all relevant documentation and required information is obtained in accordance with the FCP Program

• Provide detailed reports and recommendations to senior management based on the findings of the deal reviews

• Assist with identifying any high-risk situations and working with FCP leadership to address

• Coordinate and lead projects to bring increased organization and efficiencies to the FCP Program

• Develop and implement a system for ensuring the quality of the team’s work product

• Collaborate on the development and enhancement of technology-based solutions relating to KYC workflow and document repositories

• Identify and inform of any changes to legislation and other regulatory requirements relating to KYC

• Train new joiners in relevant processes, assist in cross-training as needed

• Support and assist with special projects and ad hoc requests/tasks as required

Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor’s Degree is required, preferably from a top university with strong academic achievement

Experience Required: 

• 8-10 years of relevant financial services compliance experience, including previous financial crime prevention responsibilities

• Strong understanding of the investment adviser industry, and U.S. and global securities laws, including the Investment Advisers Act

• Strong understanding of Anti-Money Laundering documentation requirements in accordance with relevant legislation and regulations in the United States; international exposure considered a plus

• Knowledge of complex corporate entity types, and the formation, constitutional, management/control and ownership documents of each and the information contained within them

• Familiarity with SEC, FCA, CSSF and CIMA regulatory reviews and interpretation of regulations

• Demonstrated history of client relationship management via direct client contact

• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Visio, Project, PowerPoint)

General Requirements:

• Strong sense of ownership and accountability; diligent work ethic

• Ability to manage team while also having own responsibilities for handling complex and other daily matters

• High accuracy and extremely detail-oriented

• Ability to multi-task and prioritize deadlines; results-oriented

• Effective communication skills and excellent client-service orientation; responsive and dependable

• Ability to proactively identify and logically analyze problem situations to develop an effective course of action for resolution

• Exceptional organizational skills

• Adept at working independently within a fast-paced environment

• Ability to be flexible in terms of hours in order to coordinate with team members across time zones

• Comfort in dealing with ambiguity and uncertainty in a dynamic environment

• A desire to drive outcomes and a passion for building efficient process and procedures to support the scaling of a growing business

• An analytical mind and a strong interest in bringing new ideas to increase efficiency of existing processes

• Dependable, highly motivated team player; fosters team collaboration

• Ability to handle confidential information appropriately

Reporting Relationships

Compensation

There is no set deadline to apply for this job opportunity. Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the search is no longer active.