1.     What is the mission of your company?

The Mission of Capital Compliance Experts is to mitigate the risk of global financial transactions. We do this by providing regulatory guidance to MSBs, Fintechs, remittance companies, crypto-related businesses, and other businesses in the payments space from a consultative approach and through technology solutions. 

2.     What inspires you to move forward in/with your company?

I think what inspires me to move forward with my company is three-fold. First, I like that our company supports other businesses and business owners. The regulation around MSBs can be complicated, and we can simplify the process so owners can focus on other areas of their business. Second, our company strives to assist businesses that provide needed payment solutions to business owners and consumers. At the end of the day, all the financial technologies, principal MSBs, and other organizations we do business with provide efficient and beneficial payment solutions to those that need them. Third, I have the freedom to participate in organizations such as CrossTech, MSBA (Money Services Business Association), and others to stay on the pulse of the regulatory landscape and industry changes to advise our clients better.  

3.     What kind of services do you offer?

From a service standpoint, Capital Compliance Experts (CCE) offers help with BSA/AML/OFAC independent reviews, policy and procedure development, risk assessments, licensing support, CFPB audit preparation, annual compliance oversight, and other general compliance consulting. From a product standpoint, CCE provides tools such as our compliance management portal for document storage and organization, learning management system (On POinT Training Center) to provide ongoing education to employees and staff, transaction monitoring tools (Compliance IQ) to aggregate, analyze, and detect suspicious activity, and check cashing technology to mitigate check fraud. 

4.     Tell us about your professional trajectory and the role you have within your company.

I have worked with Capital Compliance Experts for 14 years. Previously as Director of Business Development, I built a network of staff, consultants, banks, associations, and regulators to ensure our company provides the proper compliance solutions to serve our clients best. Primarily working with medium to large “high-risk” businesses, I have extensive experience placing the needed resources together to achieve projected milestones and meet client deadlines. Currently, as Head of Operations, my day-to-day goal is to ensure the company is performing efficiently and effectively.  

5.     Tell us about the trends and challenges of the industry at this moment.

One of the industry’s main challenges continues to be high-risk banking businesses. Whether you are a check casher, remittance company, fintech, crypto, or cannabis-related business, the challenge of maintaining a healthy banking relationship is genuine. In some cases, state laws conflict with federal regulation, making certain banking businesses even more challenging. As a compliance organization, our perspective is to instill a culture of compliance from the top down in any organization. Continued education, proper policies and procedures, transparency, and continuous oversight go a long way when banks determine which companies they are willing to offer services to. 

6.     After two years of the pandemic, what have been your learnings? How has it impacted your activities?

Fortunately for our company, we had a disaster plan in place. From day one of the pandemic, we quickly transitioned all employees to a remote status and continued operations without pause. However, some of our clients during the first year were forced to shut their doors temporarily to comply with local and state guidelines. It was difficult and heart-breaking to watch some generational businesses forced to close their doors for good after several months of no income yet still being forced to pay for operational expenses. 

One major way that the pandemic altered the way we do business is the lack of in-person interactions both in the office and during the independent review process. Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, and other similar video conferencing software have replaced much of business’s face-to-face aspects. 

During the early days of the pandemic, I took advantage of working at home to simultaneously study for ACAMS, take the exam, and get certified. At that time, after working in the industry for over ten years, I really wanted to get certified for myself and provide the additional expertise for my company.  

7.     CrossTech will host the biggest cross-border payment conference in November in Miami; CrossTech World 2022.  What kind of alliances are you looking for at this conference?

 By attending CrossTech World 2022 Conference, as a company, we look forward to building relationships with banking professionals, compliance consultants, and industry experts and reaching potential clients. Additionally, our team looks to continually learn what other challenges the industry faces and what other resources are available to mitigate risk for our clients. 

8.     What are your goals for 2022?

Historically our company has focused on the regulatory needs of traditional MSBs, check cashers, lenders, and principal money transmitters. One of our goals for 2022 and beyond is to continue expanding our services into the online payments space, crypto-related businesses, non-traditional payment rails, and other emerging markets.