Senior Officer – Transaction Monitoring and Payment Screening

DIB Bank Kenya Limited is a financial institution established in 2017 in Nairobi, Kenya, operating in the banking sector and adhering to Sharia principles.

The Senior Officer for Transaction Monitoring and Payment Screening is responsible for ensuring the effective identification, investigation, and escalation of potentially suspicious transactions and sanctioned payments to mitigate financial crime risks. This involves ensuring compliance with applicable Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Counter-Financing of Terrorism (CFT), and sanctions regulations through diligent alert review, sound risk-based decision-making, and high-quality case documentation. The position monitors and analyzes financial transactions to detect suspicious activities related to money laundering, terrorism financing, proliferation financing, fraud, and other financial crimes. Investigations include reviewing alerts generated by transaction monitoring and screening systems, conducting enhanced due diligence, gathering data from internal and external sources, and collaborating with other departments. The Senior Officer documents findings, clears or escalates suspicious transaction alerts, and prepares reports, such as suspicious activity reports, to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. Additionally, the role supports audit and regulatory reviews, monitors process improvements, and assists with screening system tuning.

1. Review and investigate alerts generated by transaction monitoring systems for suspicious or unusual activity.
2. Conduct detailed analysis of customer transactions to identify potential money laundering, terrorist financing, proliferation financing, fraud, or other financial crimes.
3. Apply risk-based judgment to determine whether alerts are true or false positives, escalating true positive alerts and suspicious cases appropriately to the Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO).
4. Support the preparation and escalation of Suspicious Transaction/Activity Reports (STRs/SARs) in accordance with regulatory requirements, ensuring comprehensive investigation narratives.
5. Maintain accurate case records to support audits, regulatory examinations, and internal reviews.
6. Perform name and transaction screening against sanctions, watchlists, and restricted party lists (e.g., UN, OFAC, EU, UK HMT, and local regulators).
7. Review and resolve payment screening alerts related to inbound and outbound transactions within required timelines.
8. Assess potential sanctions exposure and recommend actions such as blocking, rejecting, or releasing transactions.
9. Ensure payments comply with applicable sanctions and embargo regulations.
10. Maintain updated logs for tracking stripped payment messages, payments blocked/rejected over Sanctions concerns, and true sanctions match logs.
11. Perform monitoring checks to ensure full originator and beneficiary information is included in outgoing and incoming payment messages.
12. Perform and/or assist the Trade Operations Unit in shipment and vessel tracking, as well as IMB checks.
13. Action escalated cases from the Trade Operations Unit.
14. Assist in system testing, tuning, and implementation of new rules or typologies.
15. Identify system issues and work with relevant IT teams to resolve them, keeping the MLRO informed.
16. Identify trends, typologies, and control gaps within transaction monitoring and payment screening processes and escalate to the MLRO.
17. Contribute to continuous improvement of monitoring and screening rules.
18. Participate in quality assurance initiatives to enhance alert handling consistency and accuracy.
19. Contribute to the review and updating of compliance policies and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
20. Ensure turnaround times and service level agreements (SLAs) are met.
21. Provide guidance, coaching, and feedback to junior analysts and support knowledge-sharing within the team.
22. Liaise with the Compliance team, Central Operations, and Business teams on complex cases and escalations.
23. Act as a subject matter expert (SME) for transaction monitoring and payment screening queries.
24. Support and participate in compliance role-based training of employees.
25. Contribute to periodic Management Information System (MIS) reporting on alerts, escalations, and trends.
26. Support the implementation of audit and regulatory compliance recommendations.
27. Provide insights to the MLRO on emerging risks and operational challenges.
28. Track key performance indicators (KPIs) related to transaction monitoring and screening effectiveness.
29. Support team leads or managers in workflow optimization and backlog management.
30. Support the compliance team by providing backups, as and when required by the MLRO.
31. Undertake new tasks or responsibilities assigned by the MLRO and/or line Manager.

1. Hold a Bachelor’s Degree from a recognized institution.
2. Possess a minimum of 3-4 years of experience in a similar role, preferably within the banking sector.
3. Demonstrate strong analytical ability.
4. Proficiency in budgeting and forecasting.
5. Knowledge of compliance policy design and development.
6. Expertise in governance and risk management.
7. Skills in sanctions compliance management.
8. Understanding of Sharia Principles.
9. Strong knowledge of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) principles.
10. Proficiency in risk management.
11. Ability to think and act with a customer-centric approach.
12. Possess strong business and strategic acumen.
13. Demonstrate ownership and accountability.
14. Exhibit agility in change and innovation.
15. Ability to plan and execute tasks effectively.
16. Commitment to personal growth and team development.
17. Possess a digital mindset.
18. Ability to foster synergy within teams.
19. Strong interpersonal effectiveness.