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At Pathward, we take tremendous pride in our purpose to create financial inclusion for all™. We are a financial empowerment company that works with innovators to increase financial availability, choice, and opportunity for all. We strive to remove barriers that traditional institutions put in the way of financial access, and promote economic mobility by providing responsible, secure, high quality financial products.
We are a team of problem solvers and innovators who celebrate our differences and know that our unique perspectives make us stronger and well-positioned for success. We celebrate, and embrace, our team members through our *HUMBLE*HUNGRY*SMART approach, and we believe that we are strongest when we embrace the voices of our employees, customers, partners, and the communities we serve.
About the Role:
The Financial Crimes Quality Assurance (QA) Sr. Analyst is responsible for supporting the execution, consistency, and continuous improvement of the quality assurance program focused on Second Line of Defense (2LoD) Financial Crimes activities, including oversight, review, challenge, and governance functions across BSA/AML, Sanctions, and Fraud.
This role ensures that 2LoD processes are performed with consistency, accuracy, and in alignment with regulatory expectations and internal standards. The Sr. Analyst will validate the quality and accuracy of analyst work, evaluate identified issues and observations, and assist with the execution of QA reviews, as applicable. The Sr. Analyst will partner closely with the QA Manager in the development and enhancement of QA processes, promote consistency, and strengthen the effectiveness of the overall QA program.
What You Will Do:
Quality Oversight & Analyst Support
- Perform quality checks of analyst work to ensure consistency and adherence to QA standards and procedures
- Provide ongoing coaching, technical guidance, and on-the-job training to QA Analysts
- Support calibration activities and promote consistency in QA review outcomes across the team
Issue Management & Reporting
- Review deficiencies, observations, and issues identified by analysts for appropriateness, completeness, and severity
- Assist with validation of issue remediation and review closure evidence for identified issues
- Support preparation of QA reporting, metrics, and management updates
QA Review Execution
- Perform complex and high-risk QA reviews across 2LoD Financial Crimes processes, including BSA/AML, Sanctions, and Fraud to evaluate:
- Accuracy and completeness
- Appropriateness of risk-based judgments
- Alignment with internal standards and regulatory expectations
- Evaluate the quality of 2LoD oversight, including whether issues are appropriately identified, escalated, and resolved
- Identify and escalate recurring issues, trends, and potential control weaknesses with clear articulation of gaps in 2LoD oversight and root cause
Framework & Methodology Development
- Assist with the development and maintenance of QA methodologies specific to 2LoD activities, including:
- Test scripts tailored to oversight and challenge functions
- Defect taxonomy focused on governance, escalation, and decision quality
- Scoring frameworks to assess effectiveness of 2LoD outputs
- Ensure clear differentiation between 1LoD execution errors and 2LoD oversight deficiencies
Continuous Improvement
- Identify opportunities to enhance 2LoD QA through:
- Standardization of oversight practices
- Enhanced documentation and governance protocols
- Use of data analytics to identify anomalies or inconsistencies in 2LoD outputs
What You Will Need:
Required
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business, Risk Management, or related field
- 5-8+ years of progressive experience in Financial Crimes (AML, Sanctions, Fraud), with direct experience in:
- 2LoD Compliance / Financial Crimes oversight, or
- Quality Assurance / Testing of Financial Crimes functions
- Strong knowledge of:
- BSA/AML and sanctions regulatory expectations
- 2LoD roles and responsibilities within a three lines of defense model
- Financial crime risk management frameworks and governance practices
- Experience reviewing complex financial crime cases and providing oversight or challenge
- Experience providing oversight and review of others' work products
- Strong analytical and judgment skills
Preferred
- CAMS, CFE, CRCM, or equivalent AML certification
- Experience with Transaction Monitoring, Suspicious Activity Investigations, CDD/EDD, or Sanctions compliance
- Experience leveraging data analytics or reporting tools in QA
Key Competencies
- Strong sense of independence and professional skepticism
- Ability to assess quality of judgment and oversight (not just execution)
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Ability to influence and challenge peers within Compliance
- Attention to detail with a focus on consistency and governance
- Ability to provide effective review, feedback, and guidance
- Strong organizational and problem-solving skills
Success Metrics
- Quality and consistency of 2LoD QA reviews
- Identification of meaningful gaps in oversight and challenge
- Reduction in repeat QA findings within 2LoD
- Timeliness and effectiveness of issue remediation
- Positive feedback from regulators and Internal Audit on 2LoD QA program
- Demonstrated improvement in 2LoD governance and decision-making quality
The responsibilities listed above are not all inclusive and may be changed at any time.
Salary range: $50,000 – $84,000
The salary range reflects the minimum and maximum target for a new hire in this role. Individual pay within the range will be determined by multiple factors which can include but are not limited to a candidate’s experience, qualifications, skills, and location. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary for your location during the hiring process. Ranges may be modified in the future. This role is also eligible for an annual performance-based incentive opportunity. Pathward offers a comprehensive benefits package for eligible employees, including health insurance, 401(k) retirement benefits, life insurance, disability benefits, paid time off, and more.
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Don’t have everything listed under qualifications? If you’re excited about this role but your experiences don’t match exactly to everything in the posting, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other Pathward roles. Pathward is an equal employment opportunity employer and considers candidates for roles without regard to their race, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability or any other category protected by law.
Who we are:
Our commitment to inclusion is woven into our DNA. We believe that we are strongest when we embrace the voices of our employees, customers, partners, and the communities we serve.
We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, pregnancy, national origin, age (age 40 and over), disability, genetic information, marital status, hair texture or hairstyle, ancestry, service in the uniformed services, protected veteran status, status as a victim of domestic violence or any other class protected by federal, state and local laws.
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