Personally I’ve been in contract roles at the start of my career and even taking on a contract role again from perm before being converted. I would say u have to think hard for yourself why you are choosing to stay on at a place with no chance for conversion (as u mentioned it has been years), and is there something you could do differently, be it job performance wise or looking outside for a perm role.

If u continue to accept contract roles then this does not help u reach your end goal.

Currently I'm doing kyc analyst [contract ending soon].
I got the ica cert and also just received an offer for kyc client onboarding role.
Is it wise to make the switch ?
what are the career progression in kyc client onboarding like ?

thanks !

May I know what you are currently doing as a kyc analyst? In normal circumstances, you should be quite familiar with the client onboarding process already after having some experience.

Yes I'm familiar with the client onboarding process. Just wondering what is the career progression like as compared to kyc analyst role.

1) Be a specialist in certain business line (e.g. Private Banking / Trade Finance / Correspondent Banking)
2) Be a team lead by managing people and processes

Hi I am interested to go to KYC field too I am working as ops officer in bank contract ending soon. What are the qualifications needed for a KYC officer/analyst role. I am a degree grad but not related to finance. I am thinking to do ICA certs as well. What type of level of cert is sufficient for the role and most importantly what is the nature of work like? Working hours? And the pay lol

Thank u

Hi, anyone here took the ACAMS SG AML regime exam? I have passed the CAMS exam some time ago. Am thinking of taking the SG AML regime exam (the paper which focuses on SG regulations). There is not much available information on the content of the SG AML regime exam. So I'm wondering whether anyone can help advise:
1) Is the paper difficult to pass?
2) Is it worth the time and effort?
Thank you.

Not exactly hard if u study. Some of the answers can b quite similar
I don’t see real value add la to be honest. If Ure doing this line won’t need to invest too much time as it’s 626 and the guidelines. If Ure not in this line, have to study more.

Again, it shows the employer u took some time to get the cert. doesn’t make u an expert in sg regulations by just answering 25 qns

Honest advice from someone who has been in the banking industry for close to 10 years, and has spent the majority of my career span within FCC and eventually moved on to another specialization within banking compliance - always plan your career move in view of a longer time horizon.
FCC these days have transformed drastically from what it was 7-10 years ago. These days, many banks with a relatively sizeable operation presence in SG/SEA have adopted the "quantity over quality" approach in tackling the menial aspects of their AML/CFT framework - some banks refer them as "Compliance operations" or something similar. The "quality" issue of course would be mitigated by having a dedicated QA unit.

My opinion does not represent all of the banks but the career prospects of such roles are pretty limited these days. Gone are the days where such role is a multifaceted one or what we commonly called it in hokkien "bao ka liao". These roles are generally occupied by "foot-soldiers" hired to do just that one thing and only that one thing - you get the drift. Although, internal mobility within your firm is one option, but it is never that straightforward.

Some of the questions raised here asked about marketability, how would they be able to cross over to another specialization, etc. You see - no matter how well you sugar-coat your CV any hiring managers can see through all that and know that your experience is pretty much centered around that area. Many hiring managers/recruiters would often go for the safe approach i.e. to hire someone with a proven track record for that particular role they are looking to hire - a "chicken and egg" scenario for the new/fresh entrants. With such a big pool of candidates to choose from, hiring managers can afford to be picky. It is not impossible nor it is exceedingly difficult but there is no sure-proof way to go around it.

Gonna end my WOT but what I am trying to highlight here is - don't just head-dive into this line for the money alone (compared to other industries) - think long term if you genuinely care about shaping your career. It is not a glamorous job at all, boring as heck at the beginning or even at the mid-career for some. Even if you can 'tahan' the insipidness of the job when you're starting out, it does not automatically give you a advantage in progression.

Just to add on - I see so many posts throwing '626' here and there. For those who are starting out in this line, remember - the SG AML reg relevant to wherever you'll be working at depends on the type/license of your bank has and 626 is merely one of them, though, the contents are largely similar with some differences here and there. For those who have been involved in crafting policies would know there are other papers out there published by the MAS /or relevant industry bodies to take note of, otherwise you're going to have a field day when it comes to your bank's annual statutory audit.

Adding to what the author has mentioned, the emergence of Regtech will soon transform the way compliance professionals will go about doing BAU. Throwing bodies at compliance function will no longer be the case once banks have dealt with the immediate COVID disruption - fraud investigation and aging backlogs - and start thinking about automation processes.