Sanctions Officer

About HALA

HALA is a prominent fintech organization in the MENAP region focused on revolutionizing financial services and creating the future bank dedicated to SMEs. The company supports SMEs by providing advanced financial and technological solutions to help them initiate, operate, and expand their businesses. HALA operates across UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, including entities like HALA Payments and HALA Logistics, offering merchants tools to digitize payments and streamline sales and operational processes. Established in 2017, HALA is licensed by the Saudi Arabian Central Bank.

Job Responsibilities

• Perform sanctions name screening for clients, transactions, employees, and third parties to identify potential risks.
• Evaluate screening alerts to determine whether they are false or true matches.
• Investigate potential matches thoroughly, collecting necessary evidence before escalating cases to the Sanctions Manager.
• Take appropriate action to halt or suspend transactions when required.
• Maintain screening records with accurate and complete documentation.
• Apply freezing or temporary blocking on transactions or accounts when matches are confirmed, adhering to established policies.
• Keep the sanctions lists updated in the system and promptly incorporate regulatory changes.
• Ensure confidentiality regarding all sanctions-related information and cases.
• Assist in fulfilling requests from authorized bodies connected to sanctions cases as per established protocols.
• Help reduce false positives by providing useful feedback to refine screening parameters and criteria.
• Carry out periodic rescreening of current customers following sanctions list updates or changes in customer information.
• Support testing of the sanctions screening system by reviewing samples and confirming match accuracy.

Qualifications and Skills

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Law, Finance, Business Administration, or related disciplines; equivalent experience may substitute formal education.
• 2 to 4 years of experience in AML/CTF and sanctions compliance roles.
• Strong analytical and investigative skills with an understanding of sanctions screening and name-matching processes.
• Capability to evaluate complex risk scenarios and provide well-founded recommendations.
• Proficient documentation and report-writing abilities.
• Fluency in Arabic and English communication.
• Relevant certifications like CCO, CGSS, or equivalents are advantageous.
• Solid awareness of regulatory environment and proficient skills in analysis, risk assessment, decision support, documentation, communication, teamwork, and initiative.

Work Environment and Benefits

• Inclusive and diverse workplace culture promoting flexibility with options for remote, office, or hybrid settings.
• Competitive salary packages including potential equity participation.
• Focus on personal growth with regular training and an annual stipend for learning to adapt to new challenges.
• A multicultural team of over 30 nationalities across 7 countries, offering unique industry experience.
• Opportunities for autonomy, mentoring, and challenging objectives fostering great growth prospects.
• High level of trust and responsibility granted to employees, empowering them to make the best decisions for their roles.