Thulasiram K

Financial Crime Compliance professional with 11+ years of experience specializing in Payment Screening, Trade Screening, Name Screening, Transaction Monitoring, AML, KYC, CDD, EDD, and Client Onboarding. Experienced in handling high-risk customer reviews, sanctions screening, regulatory compliance, and end-to-end KYC lifecycle management at leading global banks including HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank. Strong analytical, investigative, and risk management skills with a focus on financial crime prevention.

Committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity while contributing to financial crime prevention and strengthening compliance frameworks in dynamic banking environments.

Team Leader, Payment Screening - HSBC

(2022-04)

• Perform payment screening investigations to identify suspicious or unusual transactions and mitigate Money Laundering, Sanctions, and Financial Crime risks.
• Review and process various SWIFT payment messages including MT103, MT202, MT101, and MT191 for the US market.
• Conduct investigations on all significant parties involved in transactions using screening tools and external databases.
• Possess hands-on experience with payment screening applications including World-Check and GCD.
• Collaborate with Payment Operations, Application Support, and Technology teams to resolve system and transaction-related issues.
• Demonstrate strong understanding of domestic and international payment systems, SWIFT messaging standards, and payment application behavior.
• Escalate complex or high-risk cases as per internal policies and regulatory requirements.
• Lead and support team activities to ensure adherence to SLAs and quality standards.

Specialist, Financial Crime Compliance - Standard Chartered Bank

(2017-06 - 2022-04)

• Performed first-level review of customer accounts and trade transactions against OFAC, UK HMT, EU, UN and internal sanctions watchlists.
• Conducted detailed investigations on counterparties to identify Fraud, AML and Sanctions risks.
• Identified red flags involving sanctioned jurisdictions and high-risk countries and escalated suspicious transactions.
• Handled incoming and outgoing SWIFT trade transactions and reviewed system-generated alerts.
• Cleared or escalated alerts based on OFAC, UK HMT and Group Sanctions policies.
• Prepared MIS reports to track turnaround time and operational performance.
• Investigated transaction patterns, trends, and anomalies to detect suspicious activities related to Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing.
• Performed analysis of transaction monitoring scenarios across multiple products and business lines.
• Conducted sanctions screening against OFAC, EU, UN, UK HMT, MAS and other regulatory lists.
• Executed real-time and periodic screening for Sanctions, SDN, PEP and Adverse Media exposure.
• Conducted Anti-Bribery and Corruption (ABC) checks on suppliers, vendors and sponsorships.
• Performed due diligence and reputation checks using internal and external databases.
• Conducted end-to-end investigations on customers and counterparties from AML, Fraud and Sanctions perspectives.
• Performed Customer Due Diligence (CDD) and Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) for onboarding and existing customers.
• Evaluated customer profiles and identified deviations from expected behavior.
• Reviewed adverse media, regulatory findings and third-party reports to identify reputational risks.
• Investigated customers, beneficial owners and related parties using internal and external databases.
• Prepared detailed case notes documenting investigation findings and recommendations.

Master of Business Administration - MBA - Vemu Institute of Technology