Cooper, Alison

Alison worked in OFAC’s Compliance and Enforcement divisions from 1997 until 2011, serving as an Enforcement Section Chief from 2005 until 2011. She spoke before many audiences on OFAC sanctions (and especially how to avoid violating them), issued thousands of administrative subpoenas, and managed hundreds of investigations into possible violations of U.S. sanctions.

She left OFAC in 2011 to join PayPal Inc., where she served as its Director of Global Sanctions until November 2016. She returned to OFAC in 2017 as its Chief of Blocked Assets Administration and Analysis. In addition to overseeing assets blocked under OFAC regulations, she leads a team of compliance officers who investigate possible OFAC violations by financial institutions.

From 1994 to 1997, Alison was a researcher with The Gallup Organization. Between 1985 and 1994, she was a researcher with the Investor Responsibility Research Center, where she researched, wrote and edited 14 directories on foreign investment in South Africa.

Alison graduated from Smith College with an AB in Government in 1985, and from The George Washington University in 1991 with an MA in Public Policy.