Overview:
The Customer Onboarding Officer manages first-line client onboarding, KYC, and KYB controls for institutional and retail clients, ensuring compliance with UAE laws, AML/CFT requirements, sanctions, and VARA regulations. The role supports safe, timely, and well-documented onboarding by conducting due diligence, validating client and corporate documents, performing risk assessments, and escalating higher-risk matters to Compliance or the MLRO.
The officer also supports investor classification, jurisdictional eligibility checks, client disclosures, recordkeeping, and periodic reviews in line with the Company's governance and risk frameworks.
Responsibilities:
- Execute end-to-end onboarding for retail and institutional clients, ensuring completeness, validation, and timely approvals
- Conduct KYC for individuals and KYB for legal entities, including document verification, ownership mapping, UBO identification, and authorised signatory checks
- Perform risk assessment and escalate higher-risk cases (PEPs, sanctions, adverse media, unusual source of funds)
- Screen clients, UBOs, and connected parties against sanctions, PEP, adverse media, and internal watchlists
- Verify jurisdictional eligibility and ensure compliance with licensing, sanctions, and legal restrictions
- Support investor classification and ensure client records reflect the correct classification and restrictions
- Prepare client agreements, disclosures, and acknowledgements before account activation
- Maintain accurate, audit-ready onboarding files, including approvals, escalations, and client communications
- Coordinate with Compliance, MLRO, Legal, Sales, Operations, Finance, Wallet, and Technology teams for smooth onboarding
- Ensure adherence to onboarding procedures, delegated authorities, and governance thresholds
- Produce MI reports, track metrics, and support process improvements for onboarding workflows
- Maintain confidentiality, comply with conduct expectations, and stay current on regulatory and internal requirements
Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Law, Compliance, Risk, or related field
- 35 years in client onboarding, KYC/KYB, AML operations, or compliance within financial services, fintech, banking, securities, payments, or virtual assets
- Experience onboarding both individuals and legal entities, including corporate ownership and UBO reviews, and sanctions/PEP screening
- Experience with institutional, corporate, family office, or high-net-worth clients preferred
- Knowledge of UAE AML/CFT, sanctions, and customer due diligence principles
- VARA-regulated or virtual asset experience preferred
- Professional certifications (ACAMS, ICA, or equivalent) advantageous
