The banking jobs: Compliance advisor

What do you do at BNP Paribas? 

Within the Market Integrity field, I monitor compliance in the areas of Domestic Markets and International Financial Services. Together with the dedicated compliance officers within these entities, I monitor the established system to ensure compliance with codes of ethics, including combating market abuses, conflicts of interests, etc. This involves drafting procedures, helping to define monitoring plans, supporting business units and local entities, and supporting the management of specific compliance projects, such as launching websites to inform our customers about our policy for managing conflicts of interest. Currently, I’m working to implement a code of conduct that will govern transactions on currency exchange markets for our various business units. 

In your opinion, what’s the hardest part of your job? 

The fact that it touches on several different sectors and areas of expertise. Regulations are increasing in number and starting to apply to a wider range of activities. Topics are also becoming more complex, even without taking into account specific geographic characteristics and businesses. That’s why you need to have a detailed understanding of regulations, combined with an open mind on the diversity of issues. It’s simply essential doing this job. 

What other qualities do you need for this job?

A good Compliance advisor demonstrates strong expertise and educational skills, but we also have to be aware that we don’t know everything. The Compliance entities and managers we work with have an in-depth knowledge of their business and sector: we must listen to them and understand their concerns to make sure that the specific nature of their activity is taken into consideration. 

We’re not there to give lessons, but to act as expert listeners and communicators of information who are open to a range of situations. In short, I would say that a good compliance advisor must ensure regulatory compliance in a pragmatic way, because good procedure means nothing if it’s not applied properly.  

What attracted you to this position at BNP Paribas? 

My interest in the diversity of the bank’s businesses and the Group’s international dimension. I took the job three years ago, when BNP Paribas was seeking to expand its Compliance division. What do I like most about it today? Making sure that complex projects proceed as smoothly as possible, notably through the confidence and mutual respect that ties us to our contacts. 

What do you think is the future of compliance? 

Though it’s often seen as a “necessary evil,” compliance will become a key factor for competitiveness. For a bank, being able to apply regulations in the most agile way possible will become a key sales argument, an asset for differentiation and, in short, a strong driver of strategic growth. Clients will always find peace of mind in knowing that their financial establishment meets the highest compliance standards.  

What is your biggest challenge at the moment? 

Managing a variety of issues and projects on a permanent basis (six underway in the field) and juggling these various demands from day to day. But this multifaceted aspect is also what makes the job so rewarding: we work in an ultra-dynamic environment. 

Photos ©rabbit75_fot // ©Wasan