Xhesika Apostoli

Key Responsibilities:

• Investigated and monitored suspicious financial activities to detect potential money laundering or financial crimes.
• Provided AML guidance and support to the First Line Operations and other infrastructure functions on financial crime prevention during day-to-day business activities.
• Conducted transaction monitoring, including watchlist and sanction screening, to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Performed customer screening, identity verification, risk profiling, and customer intelligence to assess and mitigate financial crime risks.
• Applied a risk-based approach to assess and score customer risk, managing cases to ensure accurate documentation and follow-up.
• Reported anomalous customer profiles and suspicious activities to relevant authorities in compliance with regional standards and requirements.
• Reviewed high-risk customers with special risk factors, ensuring compliance with local regulations and bank policies.
• Sought additional information from business and infrastructure functions to address concerns raised through negative media or alerts.
• Prepared training materials on anti-money laundering practices, including PowerPoint presentations for internal meetings and training sessions.
• Conducted thorough investigations into suspicious activities related to money laundering and other financial crimes.
• Collaborated with external auditors to review and improve the company’s AML programs and compliance procedures.
• Delivered AML training sessions to staff members across multiple departments, ensuring awareness of regulations and best practices.
• Evaluated and improved existing systems and controls to prevent money laundering activities, ensuring operational effectiveness.
• Prepared detailed reports summarizing findings from investigations into suspected cases of money laundering or terrorist financing.
• Performed periodic customer account reviews to identify evidence of suspicious activity or unusual transactions.
• Monitored accounts for irregularities, identifying potential illegal financial transactions and taking necessary action.
• Inspected audit reports from internal and external auditors to assess adequacy and identify weaknesses in internal controls and routines.
• Conducted due diligence reviews of customer data, ensuring full compliance with KYC regulations.
• Ensured the proper storage and handling of client-related documents in accordance with company policies.
• Performed regular audits of customer files to verify the accuracy and completeness of documentation.
• Collaborated with other departments to ensure the accuracy and up-to-date status of customer information.
• Maintained a comprehensive and detailed database of compliance data, activities, and actions taken.

Key Responsibilities:

Customer Service:

• Informed cardholders about account and card usage.
• Addressed issues related to the ATM network and online e-banking services.
• Facilitated the closure or reactivation of access to the online e-banking system.
• Provided technical support to customers regarding company products and services.
• Resolved customer complaints promptly, maintaining high levels of service.
• Conducted periodic training sessions for new team members on digital customer service best practices.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams (product development, engineering, marketing, finance, operations, legal, compliance, and customer service) to support successful execution of digital sales plans.
  

Card Operations:

• Monitored card actions and identified potential fraud.
• Evaluated notifications (alerts) for suspicious activities, escalating concerns to the relevant manager.
• Contacted cardholders in case of unconfirmed actions and took necessary measures.
• Reported all actions related to notifications during shifts, whether confirmed or unconfirmed.
• Managed the closure of cards in case of loss or theft and reissued cards when necessary.
  

Key Learnings:

• Recorded and processed invoices for the economic entity (Alpha Web) using accounting software.
• Gained hands-on experience with computerized accounting systems (Finance 5).
• Learned to draft and analyze financial statements, ensuring accuracy and compliance.
• Gained proficiency in preparing and submitting online tax office declarations.