Head of Compliance Monitoring and Testing Officer - Abu Dhabi

Since being founded in 2018, Copper has been building the standard for institutional digital asset infrastructure with a focus on custody, collateral management, and prime services.

Led by Amar Kuchinad, Copper's Global CEO, the firm provides a comprehensive suite of custody, trading and settlement solutions that reduce counterparty risk and bring greater capital and operational efficiency to digital asset markets. At the heart of Copper's offering is Multi-Party Computation (MPC) technology – the gold standard in secure custody. Copper’s multi-award winning custody system is unique in that it can be connected to centralised exchanges, DeFi applications and even staking pools without the assets leaving the custody.

Built on top of this state-of-the-art custody, ClearLoop is the first solution in the market that overcomes a growing industry challenge; counterparty risk with exchanges. This solution underpins a full prime services offering, connecting global exchanges, and enabling customers to trade and settle directly from the safety of their MPC-secured wallets. By reducing settlement time for transfers to a few milliseconds (without blockchain network dependency) and offering enhanced security measures, ClearLoop is rapidly reshaping the way asset managers trade and manage capital.

In addition to industry-leading security certifications, Copper has one of the strongest insurance coverages in the industry from an A+ rated insurer, positioning the firm as the partner of choice for institutions seeking to safeguard their assets.

Department environment

The Compliance team is a collaborative and high energy group of smart, driven and intellectually curious professionals. We take our work but not ourselves incredibly seriously, tackling novel issues and supporting the business with focus, precision, and relentless good humour. We know and support each other deeply as professionals and humans. We proudly hold a range of passports and qualifications and speak as many languages as we have team members - diversity on all levels is deeply valued.

Key Responsibilities Of The Role

This role is responsible for owning and leading the design, execution, and continuous improvement of the Compliance Monitoring & Testing program, with a strong focus on financial crime prevention, audit readiness, and regulatory compliance—particularly in high-risk domains such as client onboarding, transaction monitoring and Travel Rule adherence in the cryptocurrency space.

The ideal candidate is a hands-on leader who has demonstrated success in building and scaling testing programs, driving regulatory outcomes, and partnering across the business to embed risk awareness and mitigation.

Program Ownership & Strategy

• Lead the CMT function with full ownership of the design, delivery, and enhancement of a robust, risk-based monitoring and testing framework.
• Develop annual and ad-hoc testing plans aligned with financial crime risk assessments, regulatory obligations, and business priorities.
• Provide strategic direction to ensure CMT contributes effectively to the enterprise compliance program.
  
  

Testing & Assurance

• Conduct comprehensive, in-depth testing of compliance controls—including but not limited to financial crime measures such as transaction monitoring & sanctions screening,
• KYC, PEPs, adverse media screening, and Travel Rule processes—ensuring alignment with broader regulatory obligations and internal policy requirements.
• Identify weaknesses or gaps in design and execution of controls, providing actionable recommendations for remediation and enhancement
• Perform assurance reviews to assess the effectiveness of compliance controls—including those related to AML, CFT, fraud, and wider regulatory obligations—delivering high-quality reports supported by data-driven insights.
  
  

Audit Readiness & Remediation

• Improve organisational audit posture through targeted testing, tracking of remediation progress, and pre-audit assurance activities.
• Successfully lead cross-functional remediation efforts, achieving demonstrable regulatory readiness.
  
  

Governance, Reporting & Stakeholder Engagement

• Develop and maintain clear governance over CMT activities, including issue tracking, thematic analysis, and reporting to senior management and risk committees.
• Deliver regular MI on testing outcomes, emerging risks, and control effectiveness.
• Partner closely with Compliance, Risk, Legal, and Business leaders to align monitoring efforts with enterprise objectives.
  
  

Team Building & Capability Uplift

• Build and mentor a high-performing testing team; oversee training frameworks and onboarding materials, currently used across compliance functions.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement and regulatory awareness throughout the compliance and business lines.
  
  

Regulatory Engagement & Horizon Scanning

• Monitor changes in applicable laws, regulations, and guidance impacting financial crime compliance (e.g., VQF, FinCEN, FATF).
• Translate regulatory expectations into practical, scalable control testing solutions
  
  

Your Experience, Skills And Knowledge

• Extensive experience in compliance monitoring and testing, ideally within financial services or cryptocurrency sectors.
• Proven track record in leading assurance programs with a focus on financial crime (AML, CFT, fraud) and general regulatory compliance.
• Strong familiarity with controls related to transaction monitoring, sanctions, PEPs/adverse media.
• Experience handling audit readiness and regulatory remediation programs.
• Knowledge of monitoring methodologies, risk assessments, and control testing strategies.
• Proficiency in data analysis and reporting to generate actionable insights from testing outcomes.
• Strong communicator with experience influencing senior leadership and contributing to enterprise-wide compliance strategy.
• Capability to build and develop high-performing teams, including training and mentoring.
  
  

Desirable

• Deep understanding of global regulatory frameworks (e.g., FATF, FinCEN, FINMA, FMA & FSRA) and compliance risks specific to financial crime and crypto ecosystems.
• Strategic thinker with ability to design and scale monitoring and testing programs.
• Demonstrated leadership in managing cross-functional teams and engaging with senior stakeholders.
• Experience of systems & controls specific to the digital asset business such as Blockchain Intelligence and Travel Rule
  
  

The Benefits Offered

• Paid Time Off - 25 days annual leave per annum in addition to local bank holidays. Employees also receive one additional day of annual leave for each year of service.
• Private Medical Insurance
• 24/7 Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
  
  

In return for everything you can bring to Copper, we can offer you an exciting, challenging role in a fast-growing and dynamic business, with career opportunities and welcoming working environment.

If you think you have everything we're looking for and more, then we'd love you to apply for the opportunity.

Copper is an equal opportunity employer. We embrace diversity and equal opportunities in a serious way. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. So, bring us your experience, perspectives, and skills. It is in our differences that we will continue to grow and ensure Copper is transforming how institutional investors engage with digital assets. Copper is a Disability Confident Employer, please let us know if you have a disability. If you require us to provide any assistance during the recruitment process, then we would ask you to highlight this to us and we will be happy to accommodate.