2013 Conference Panels

From FATCA to FCPA, anti-money laundering best practices to fraud liability risks to looming beneficial owner rules, the ACFCS 2013 Conference panels will cover the most pressing hot-button issues in financial crime worldwide. Top experts will give attendees direct training and actionable intelligence in a dynamic, interactive format.

15 Interactive Panels Give You Great Training and Real-World Knowledge:

1. How US Institutions Can Avoid FATCA Landmines and Reap Its Hidden Benefits

FATCA, the US tax evasion-financial crime dragnet called has arrived. US financial institutions are feeling the impact of the law that will uncover hidden wealth of US persons in foreign accounts. The law will also unearth secret wealth of financial criminals that comes from money laundering, corruption and fraud. US institutions face formidable due diligence and data management duties in classifying accountholders, determining FATCA-compliant institutions, and preparing for the withholding tax, to avoid penalties. They also face the headache of divulging information to foreign tax authorities on their non-US accountholders, a duty created by US “Inter-Governmental Agreements” (IGAs) with other nations. But FATCA has a silver lining. It forces institutions to improve compliance and customer data collection procedures, and synchronize databases. How should US institutions meet the due diligence challenges? How should they manage their data under FATCA? How should they prepare for the coming duty to report non-US customers under the bi-national “Intergovernmental Agreements?” Here, top experts give you these and other answers and guide you through the morass of FATCA.

(AML Applicability: FATCA is now or will become the duty of many AML compliance officers. At its heart, FATCA addresses money laundering or its equivalent by US taxpayers.)

Speakers: Stanley I. Foodman, Bruce Zagaris, Allen G. Love, Edward Sander

2. Threat Finance – Unraveling the Finances of National Security Threats to Choke Off Terrorism, Trafficking, Corruption and Other Perils

The one common component of the national security threats the United States and its allies face is money. Military and intelligence agencies recognize this and have mounted an effort to assure that their “boots on the ground” are alert to things they see and find, which may be pieces of the financial puzzle linked to national security threats and help choke off their finances. Foreign corruption and trafficking in drugs, humans and weapons of mass destruction and terrorism are the key foreign threats the US and allies face. They rely on similar mechanisms and institutions for moving and concealing funds. Recognizing the common threads, a new branch of financial crime has emerged in military and intelligence agencies, “threat finance.” They recognize that the finances of these threats flow through financial institutions and involve private sector participants. They are learning from private sector specialists and pioneering new techniques. What is the role of financial institutions in all this? What public-private measures are most effective? What international bodies are involved? In this seminal panel, top experts guide you and show you what the future holds.

(AML Applicability: AML officers must know about threat finance because the finances of all national security threats run through banks and other financial institutions.)

Speakers: Dan Barta, J.R. Helmig, Jim Bischoff

3. Sanctions Compliance – Building and Maintaining a Good Program in the Era of Big Penalties, Reputational Risk, Tough Enforcement

With sanctions scandals dominating recent headlines and US regulators imposing record-shattering penalties for violations, toeing the line on sanctions laws and rules has become a key compliance challenge for US and non-US financial institutions alike. Along with greater scrutiny from US enforcement agencies, financial institutions must also confront new sanctions requirements in the European Union and the US. One unwelcome development for them is the rise of state regulators in the sanctions field, as Standard Chartered in New York can attest. What are the new sanctions risks that the financial sector faces? What are the latest best practices to construct a top compliance program? How has US regulatory oversight shifted? What do the agencies expect in sanctions compliance? How can technology and advanced screening systems improve compliance? What lessons do the major recent sanctions enforcement cases, like those against ING and Standard Chartered, teach? What techniques do financial criminals use to evade the sanctions laws? Here, leading experts from US and international institutions offer top guidance and insight to help you get sanctions compliance right.

(AML Applicability: Sanctions compliance is a vital part of all AML compliance and forms part of the FFIEC Bank Secrecy Act Examiners Manual.)

Speakers: Ron P. King, Monique Maranto, Stephen J. Shine, James Slear

4. The Growing Reach of the FCPA and Global Anti-Corruption Enforcement – How to Comply Effectively and What’s Coming

The US Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission are pursuing violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act as never before against diverse corporations, financial institutions and government officials. United States and non-US companies are under pressure to assure their compliance programs are sound. Facing a US enforcement action can be very costly in many ways. A high percentage of the largest penalties for FCPA violations are against non-US companies. Plus, the Justice Department has entered into many “Deferred Prosecution Agreements” with companies for FCPA violations, resulting in large penalties and remedial measures. Nearly 100 companies are under investigation with more coming. Financial institutions face FCPA dangers for their own involvement in illegal foreign practices and through the financial services they provide for payments by US companies to foreign public officials or on the receiving end. How should organizations manage anti-corruption compliance? What lessons do recent FCPA and UK Bribery Act cases give? What should a company do if it discovers a violation? Here, four experts, including Paul Pelletier, who led the Justice Department’s FCPA unit, show you how to comply and avoid problems.

(AML Applicability: The FCPA is all about the corrupt payments by US companies to foreign political and military leaders, or PEPs, or a main focus of AML compliance officers jobs.)

Speakers: Deborah M. Morrisey, Paul Pelletier, Kelvin Dickenson, Eileen Radford

5. The Age of Convergence – Uniting Corruption, AML, Fraud and Sanctions Teams to Build World-Class Financial Crime Risk Management Units

With the silos that once separated financial crime departments and disciplines starting to crumble at last, the “convergence” trend is gaining steam at financial institutions, businesses and even some government agencies. By combining and leveraging resources to maximize skills, eliminate duplication, and exploit data and intelligence, organizations can improve risk management and regulatory compliance and improve results. Technology is both an ally and an obstacle in this movement. How should financial institutions and corporations construct an effective, unified ‘Financial Crime Risk Management Unit’ from their AML, fraud, sanctions and corruption teams? What are the key technological, management and staffing challenges to converging financial crime units? What does convergence look like at enforcement and regulatory agencies? What can institutions and agencies learn from organizations that have already adopted a convergent approach? In this essential panel, experts and pioneers of convergence share their real-world experiences and give best practices for success in this new approach to financial crime compliance and enforcement.

(AML Applicability: Convergence, meaning the blending of AML, fraud, sanctions and other units, is one of the most important developments in AML compliance in recent years.)

Speakers: Daniel P. Boylan, Kelvin Dickenson, Allen Love

6. Whistleblowers, Cooperators and Wires – How the Government Uses Weapons Created for Organized Crime Against Financial Criminals

The gloves are off in financial crime investigations. In growing numbers, Wall Street traders, wealthy tax evaders and other financial criminals are now on the receiving end of investigative tactics once mainly used against mobsters, drug traffickers, and terrorists. US law enforcement agents are ensnaring securities fraudsters with phone taps and intercepted electronic messages, and breaking up money laundering rings with the help of informants. Agencies like the IRS and SEC have launched major new programs offering multimillion dollar rewards to whistleblowers. These new strategies give law enforcement potent methods to ensnare financial criminals, while leaving financial institutions exposed to new compliance risks. How have “organized crime” tools impacted financial crime investigations, and has it been successful? What US agencies have led this charge, and what lessons can they offer to public and private sector investigative professionals? With enforcement agencies and regulators aggressively recruiting whistleblowers, what should institutions do to ensure their compliance programs are adequate? Here, top representatives of enforcement and regulatory agencies analyze this new investigative reality and guide you on what it means for investigators, compliance officers and regulators.

(AML Applicability: Every financial crime involves money laundering and many of the cases that this panel treats involved in money laundering through financial institutions.)

Speakers: Daniel Levy, David G. Nanz, Edward Rounds, John Tobon

7. How Non-US Institutions Must Navigate FATCA to Avoid Problems with Governments – The Hidden Money Laundering Risks

The US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, FATCA, will uncover US tax evaders and other financial criminals worldwide. The law places new compliance duties on all non-United States financial institutions that hold accounts for US persons. With the first reporting duties months away, non-US institutions must race to comply with the new requirements or face serious consequences. They confront many challenges: collecting new information on US accountholders, implementing new data systems, determining how they register with and report to the US Internal Revenue Service and more. New FATCA “Intergovernmental Agreements” worry many non-US institutions whose own executives or their nominees may have secret US accounts, to say nothing of political, military leaders and executives of state-owned enterprises of their countries. What must non-US institutions do to prepare for FATCA? How do FATCA agreements affect their compliance? What are the best practices to identify US accountholders and manage data for FATCA reporting? Here, experts give you practical answers and guidance on what non-US institutions must do to meet the weighty new FATCA duties.

(AML Applicability: AML officers must be concerned about why non-US accountholders had funds in US banks and the AML compliance issues of the law’s implementation.)

Speakers: Ron P. King, Bruce Zagaris

8. Data Security and Cybercrime – Confronting the Growing Menace, Challenge and Risks on Financial Crime’s Digital Frontier

The threat financial crime specialists face from data breaches and cybercrime is real and present. They affect the entire financial crime terrain and all persons who work there. Tools like online banking and data networks have moved big portions of our economic activity to the digital realm. Financial criminals have followed closely behind. In this new battleground, financial institutions, corporations and all government agencies face a multiplying array of financial crime risks, from cyberfrauds, to data and identity theft, to account takeover schemes and more. Protecting electronically stored data is essential to detecting and preventing them. Organizations must have sound controls in place to protect themselves and their customers. What are the critical cybercrime risks institutions, companies and government face? How can they guard against sophisticated attacks from hackers and state-sponsored entities? Are there common vulnerabilities to data breaches and intrusions? What are the emerging best practices in data security? Here, four cybercrime experts give you best practices and guidance on one of the biggest financial crime challenges of our times.

(AML Applicability: AML officers must know about cybercrime; it threatens bank customer and compliance records and threatens all financial institution operations.)

Speakers: J.R. Helmig, Todd Marlin, John F. Walsh

9. Cracking Secrecy Havens to Uncover Financial Criminals and Recover Stolen Assets

The more than 60 worldwide secrecy havens are one of the most enduring obstacles to effective detection, control and apprehension of financial criminals and their criminal proceeds. The havens are reliable allies to all financial criminals. They allow the financial criminals to operate in the dark where they flourish. As global anti-corruption and tax evasion efforts gain force, growing attention is focused on identifying the vehicles financial criminals use to hide dirty money and disguise beneficial owners. Government initiatives like FATCA and the model agreements and similar laws it has spawned threaten the financial criminals’ hiding spots and prompt them to build even more complex ownership structures. What are effective investigative techniques that allow secrecy havens to be penetrated to identify true beneficial owners? What best practices should financial institutions follow with customers who have ties to the havens? How are new regulations and enforcement operations eroding havens and driving financial criminals toward greater creativity? Here, four experts guide you on one of the biggest challenges in the financial crime field.

(AML Applicability: Many cross-border asset recovery cases involve the proceeds of money laundering and involve financial institutions or transactions at these institutions.)

Speakers: Michael R. McDonald, Deborah M. Morrisey, Daniel Levy

10. Money Laundering’s Evolving Battleground – How Mobile and Virtual Payments and Other Technology and Rules are Reshaping AML Compliance

The old adage “everything old is new again” is certainly true of money laundering and the efforts against it, as heightened scrutiny by regulators and major enforcement actions have put the spotlight squarely back on AML compliance. Financial institutions are facing increased oversight and new examination policies from regulators like the OCC, while both institutions and enforcement agencies are contending with new technologies allowing launderers to conceal and move assets anonymously online. These and other factors have combined to make AML a key compliance challenge for institutions once again. How should institutions prepare their AML compliance programs for stricter enforcement and regulatory changes in the US and EU? How are money launderers exploiting new channels like virtual currencies, mobile payments and online banking, and how can institutions and law enforcement agencies detect and pursue them? How are global financial crime initiatives like FATCA both supporting AML compliance efforts and presenting new KYC and data management challenges? Thought leaders and seasoned experts give indispensible training to prepare you for the present and future of AML compliance.

(AML Applicability: The title of this panel says it all.)

Speakers: Shannon Bennett, Ron P. King, Becki LaPorte, Allen G. Love

11. Guarding Against the ‘Enemy Within’ – Effective Employee Due Diligence Before and After They Get the Keys

An ever present danger for all organizations, particularly financial institutions and corporations, is the “enemy within.” Institutions, corporations and government agencies spend substantial resources on due diligence to protect against external financial crime risks when they onboard customers and vet vendors. But for their employees, who have access to key functions and sensitive information that could be compromised, often receive little scrutiny before they are hired and then virtually ignored once they have the keys. Beyond the staggering losses of internal thievery, estimated at $3 trillion worldwide in 2011, employee participation in financial crime can damage an organization’s reputations and expose it to liability to victims of fraud, money laundering and other financial crime. How should organizations protect against the “enemy within”? What employee due diligence programs should they have? What internal controls are most effective and appropriate for detecting and preventing illicit behavior, while respecting privacy rights and maintaining a good organizational culture? What are the best practices for employee monitoring? Here, experts give you practical answers and show you pitfalls to avoid.

(AML Applicability: “Know Your Employee” is a vital element of all AML controls. AML officers must know best practices to keep bad employees out and good employees in.)

Speakers: David G. Nanz, John F. Walsh, Stephen J. Shine, Karen Van Ness

12. Mining Open Source Intelligence, Social Networks and Other Tools To EnhanceCompliance and Due Diligence and Investigations

Whether it’s due diligence steps a financial crime specialist performs on a customer, employee or adversary, or a company digging for information on an overseas business venture or third-party provider, or an investigative agent probing for associations, intelligence and missing evidence, they cannot do it today without databases, e-mails, text messages, tweets, GPS and cell phone data and the Internet. GPS tracking, cell phones, Internet, Google, Facebook, YouTube and others demonstrate that virtually nothing today is private. Almost everything leaves a digital imprint. Financial criminals once left paper trails. Investigating crime meant searching files and dumpster diving. Now, the trail is a digital goldmine that financial crime specialists must learn to exploit. What must they do to find and manage digital evidence in compliance, detection and due diligence work? What about the dangers of dorking, doxing, cyber-stalking and targeting by a counter-investigation? Here, in this dynamic panel, experts led by the in-demand Sandra Stibbards give you crucial knowledge that will enhance your arsenal tremendously. This panel is worth the price of admission.

(AML Applicability: All AML tasks, including due diligence, monitoring and supervision, need skills in how to find information effectively and efficiently.)

Speakers: Katya Hirose, Sandra Stibbards, Kevin Tanaka

13. 7 Deadly Sins in Major Recent Cases – The AML, Fraud, Sanctions, Compliance and Regulation

The largest financial crime cases of the past year were rife with unprecedented penalties, startling revelations of wrongdoing, and widespread public outcry. Yet behind the headlines, these cases hold invaluable insights on when and how compliance programs break down at financial institutions, and how regulators are making their AML, sanctions and fraud enforcement decisions. What can institutions large and small learn from the “7 deadly” compliance and management failings committed by large financial institutions in the past year? What do the resulting enforcement actions demonstrate about regulator’s expectations? Will the media attention and political pressure in the wake of these cases lead to tougher enforcement and oversight? What can the corrective measures undertaken these institutions and others teach about effective compliance remediation? Here, top authorities from financial institutions and regulatory agencies provide an in-depth analysis of what went wrong at some of the world’s largest banks, and give guidance to help your compliance and enforcement programs get it right.

(AML Applicability: Each of these major cases had major AML elements. Conference attendees will get direct training on how to spot them and deal with the AML issues.)

Speakers: Becki LaPorte, Paul Pelletier, Karen Van Ness

14. Harnessing Data Analytics in Financial Crime Control – Taming ‘Big Data’ to Improve Enforcement, Compliance, and Regulation

A compliance officer monitoring accounts for suspicious activity, an investigator combing through records for leads, or a regulator examining a financial institution all face the same challenge: they all must contend with mountains of data. Huge amounts of “electronically stored information” from internal and external sources play a role in every facet of financial crime detection and prevention. Properly collecting, analyzing and interpreting “big data” can be the difference between compliance and investigative success or costly errors and fumbled cases. How can data analytics support compliance, investigations and regulation by unifying disparate data sources and permitting broader internal sharing of technological tools and systems across department lines? How are institutions using new analytic tools for a more complete understanding of customers? How can organizations properly assess their operations to understand how data analytics can cut costs and improve results? What are the key technological and management challenges when implementing a new analytic system? Here, four experts guide you on the innovations and hurdles of data analytics and equip you with the tools to master big data.

(AML Applicability: Everything an AML officer does, from due diligence on a new customer to gathering records for an impending bank examination, deals with data and data analytics.)

Speakers: J.R. Helmig, Todd Marlin, Jack Nadeau, David Stewart

Sponsors & Exhibitors