Job Openings at Equity Bank Kenya

JOB PURPOSE

• The Senior Compliance Manager – Regulatory Change, Policies & Standards is responsible for the proactive identification, interpretation, governance and oversight of regulatory change, compliance policies, standards and regulatory obligations across the Bank, in line with applicable laws, Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) Prudential Guidelines, Financial Reporting Centre (FRC) requirements and Group standards.
•  The role ensures that regulatory requirements are translated into clear policies, accountable ownership and effective controls, that implementation is tracked to closure, and that material delays, breaches and policy deficiencies are escalated in a timely manner, while preserving a clear separation of responsibilities under the Three Lines of Defence.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead enterprise-wide regulatory horizon scanning, interpretation and impact assessment of new and changing laws, regulations and supervisory guidance.
• Oversee regulatory change implementation plans, accountable owners, dependencies, milestones and escalation of delays.
• Lead the development, review and approval of regulatory compliance policies, standards and frameworks.
• Maintain policy governance, version control and alignment with Group standards and regulatory requirements.
• Oversee the central regulatory obligations inventory, including applicability mapping, executive ownership and control linkages.
• Coordinate the Bank’s submissions and feedback on CBK reforms, consultation papers and emerging regulations.
• Advise Management on regulatory requirements for new products, digital channels, outsourcing, expansion and technology change.
• Prepare regulatory change and policy governance reports for ExCo and the Board Risk Committee.
• Lead, develop and allocate resources across the Regulatory Change, Policies & Standards team.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Establish and maintain an enterprise-wide regulatory horizon scanning process covering CBK, FRC, CMA, ODPC, KDIC and other relevant authorities.
• Ensure timely and documented interpretation and impact assessment of regulatory changes, working with Legal where interpretation is complex.
• Ensure each regulatory change has an approved implementation plan, accountable executive owner, defined milestones and evidence of completion.
• Monitor implementation progress and escalate overdue, at-risk or deficient implementation to Senior Management and governance forums.
• Lead the policy lifecycle, including drafting standards, stakeholder consultation, approval routing, periodic review and attestation.
• Maintain a policy and standards register with version control, ownership, review dates and alignment to Group policies.
• Oversee the regulatory obligations register, ensuring applicability mapping, ownership, control linkages and integration into the GRC system.
• Coordinate consolidated Bank responses to CBK consultations, draft Prudential Guidelines and Risk Management Guidelines.
• Provide regulatory advisory input into new products, digital channels, outsourcing arrangements, expansion and technology change.
• Identify regulatory compliance gaps and ensure remediation actions are owned by the accountable First Line functions.
• Prepare regulatory change dashboards, policy status reports and obligation coverage reports for ExCo and the Board Risk Committee.
• Escalate significant regulatory breaches, implementation delays and policy deficiencies through established governance structures.
• Support regulatory inspections, audits and thematic reviews relating to regulatory change and policy governance.
• Drive the adoption of regulatory technology to improve horizon scanning, obligations management and policy governance.
• Lead, mentor and develop the team, including performance management, capability building and succession planning.

Qualifications

CORE COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS

• Strong knowledge of Kenyan banking laws, CBK Prudential Guidelines, Risk Management Guidelines and FRC requirements.
• Expertise in regulatory horizon scanning, impact assessment and regulatory change management.
• Strong policy drafting, policy governance and standards development capability.
• Understanding of regulatory obligations registers, control mapping and GRC systems.
• Ability to interpret and apply regulatory requirements in a practical business environment.
• Excellent report writing, Board reporting and executive communication skills.
• Strong stakeholder engagement, influencing and constructive challenge capability.
• Demonstrated leadership, people management and team development skills.
• High integrity, independence, sound judgement and attention to detail. 

EXPERIENCE

• Minimum 10 years’ experience in Regulatory Compliance, Risk Management, Legal, Internal Audit or related functions within the financial services sector.
• At least 5 years’ experience in a management role.
• Demonstrated experience in a complex regulated financial institution, regulatory authority or leading professional services firm.
• Demonstrated experience in regulatory change management, policy governance and regulatory obligations management.
• Prior experience in a Tier 1 bank and familiarity with CBK and FRC supervisory expectations will be an added advantage.

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Law, Finance, Banking, Commerce, Economics, Business Administration, Risk Management or a related field.
• Master’s degree in a relevant discipline will be an added advantage.
• Professional certifications such as ICA Diploma in Governance, Risk and Compliance, CCEP, CAMS, CPA(K), ACCA, CPS(K) or equivalent.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous professional development in regulatory compliance and governance.

go to method of application »

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Perform AML/CFT/CPF horizon scanning, regulatory interpretation, impact assessments, change tracking and escalation.
• Draft and coordinate AML/CFT/CPF policy and standards reviews, consultations, approval packs, version control and gap assessments.
• Maintain the AML/CFT/CPF regulatory obligations register, including applicability, ownership mapping and control linkages.
• Prepare technical advice, draft responses to CBK and FRC, new product impact assessments and committee papers.
• Monitor implementation milestones, overdue actions and regulatory remediation evidence, and challenge accountable owners.
• Support regulatory inspections, audits and consultation submissions on AML/CFT/CPF matters.
• Supervise specialists, review work quality and promote technical development.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Track AML/CFT/CPF developments from CBK, FRC, FATF, ESAAMLG, sanctions authorities and Group, and assess their impact on the Bank.
• Prepare documented impact assessments that identify affected policies, processes, systems, controls and accountable owners.
• Draft, review and update AML/CFT/CPF policies, standards and procedures in line with POCAMLA, the Prevention of Terrorism Act, CBK Prudential Guidelines and Group standards.
• Coordinate stakeholder consultation and prepare policy approval packs for management committees and the Board.
• Maintain version control, review schedules and the AML/CFT/CPF policy library.
• Maintain the AML/CFT/CPF regulatory obligations register and validate the status of obligations with accountable owners.
• Perform gap assessments between regulatory requirements, policies and implemented controls.
• Prepare technical responses to CBK and FRC queries, consultations and draft guidelines for review and approval.
• Provide AML/CFT/CPF impact assessments for new products, channels and business changes.
• Monitor implementation of regulatory changes and remediation actions, and escalate overdue or deficient actions.
• Review remediation evidence for completeness and sufficiency before Second Line acceptance.
• Prepare MI and committee papers on regulatory change status, policy reviews and obligation coverage.
• Supervise and coach specialists and maintain quality standards for team outputs.

Qualifications

CORE COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS

• Strong knowledge of AML/CFT/CPF laws, CBK Prudential Guidelines, FATF Standards and sanctions requirements.
• Expertise in regulatory interpretation, impact assessment and gap analysis.
• Strong policy drafting and technical writing capability.
• Understanding of regulatory obligations registers, control mapping and GRC tools.
• Ability to interpret and apply regulatory requirements in a practical business environment.
• Strong analytical, organisational and attention-to-detail capabilities.
• Effective stakeholder engagement and constructive challenge capability.
• Supervisory, coaching and team development skills.
• High integrity, independence and sound judgement.

 EXPERIENCE

• Minimum 7 years’ experience in AML/CFT/CPF, Regulatory Compliance, Risk, Legal or Internal Audit within the financial services sector.
• At least 3 years’ experience in a supervisory or senior specialist role.
• Demonstrated experience in AML/CFT/CPF policy development, regulatory impact assessment and obligations management.
• Experience preparing regulatory submissions, committee papers and responses to regulators.
• Prior experience in a Tier 1 bank and familiarity with CBK and FRC supervisory expectations will be an added advantage

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Law, Finance, Banking, Commerce, Economics, Risk Management or a related field.
• Master’s degree in a relevant discipline will be an added advantage.
• Professional certifications such as CAMS, ICA Diploma in AML, ICA Diploma in Governance, Risk and Compliance, CCEP, CPA(K) or equivalent.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous professional development in AML/CFT/CPF and regulatory compliance.

go to method of application »

JOB PURPOSE

• The Manager – AML & KYC Advisory is responsible for providing risk-based AML/CFT/CPF and KYC advisory opinions, independent review and challenge on customer onboarding, retention and high-risk relationships across the Bank.
• The role ensures that CDD, EDD and beneficial ownership assessments meet regulatory and policy requirements, that advisory decisions are documented and consistent, and that material customer financial crime risks are escalated in a timely manner.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide risk-based opinions on onboarding, customer retention, CDD, EDD and complex KYC exceptions.
• Review and challenge PEP assessments, adverse media, source of funds and wealth, high-risk sectors and proposed acceptance decisions.
• Analyse complex ownership and control arrangements, documentation sufficiency, trusts, nominees and layered entities.
• Advise on customer risk-rating overrides, event-driven reviews, periodic reviews and mitigation measures.
• Contribute to KYC policy development, digital onboarding and risk-rating system changes.
• Document advisory decisions, escalate material risks and support regulatory inspections.
• Review specialist opinions, supervise workload and coach analysts.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Deliver timely, documented and consistent advisory opinions within agreed service levels.
• Assess the adequacy of CDD and EDD performed by First Line and challenge gaps in information, verification or risk mitigation.
• Review PEP, adverse media, high-risk jurisdiction and high-risk sector cases and recommend acceptance, conditions or decline.
• Assess source of funds and source of wealth explanations and supporting evidence for plausibility and sufficiency.
• Analyse beneficial ownership and control structures and confirm documentation sufficiency in line with regulatory requirements.
• Review customer risk-rating overrides and recommend appropriate risk classification and mitigation measures.
• Advise on event-driven reviews triggered by monitoring, screening, adverse media or law enforcement requests.
• Maintain an advisory log and quality-assured case files to support audit and regulatory review.
• Identify recurring KYC deficiencies and control themes and report them for remediation by accountable owners.
• Provide technical input into KYC procedures, digital onboarding journeys, risk-rating tools and new product reviews.
• Escalate material customer financial crime risks to the Senior Manager – KYC Advisory and the MLRO.
• Support regulatory inspections, audits and correspondent bank due diligence requests.
• Supervise, review and coach analysts and maintain quality standards for advisory outputs.

Qualifications

CORE COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS

• Strong knowledge of AML/CFT/CPF laws, CBK Prudential Guidelines, FATF Standards and beneficial ownership requirements.
• Expertise in CDD, EDD, PEP assessment, adverse media and source of funds and wealth analysis.
• Ability to analyse complex corporate, trust and nominee structures.
• Strong understanding of banking products, customer segments and financial crime typologies.
• Strong analytical, investigative and risk assessment capabilities.
• Clear and concise written advisory and report writing skills.
• Effective stakeholder engagement and constructive challenge capability.
• Supervisory, coaching and team development skills.
• High integrity, independence, discretion and sound judgement.

EXPERIENCE

• Minimum 7 years’ experience in AML/CFT/CPF, KYC, Financial Crime Compliance, Risk or Internal Audit within the financial services sector.
• At least 3 years’ experience in a supervisory or senior specialist role.
• Demonstrated experience in CDD, EDD, PEP and beneficial ownership assessments for complex customers.
• Experience supporting KYC remediation, regulatory inspections and correspondent bank due diligence.
• Prior experience in a Tier 1 bank and familiarity with CBK and FRC supervisory expectations will be an added advantage.

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Law, Finance, Banking, Commerce, Accounting, Economics, Risk Management or a related field.
• Master’s degree in a relevant discipline will be an added advantage.
• Professional certifications such as CAMS, ICA Diploma in AML, ICA Certificate in KYC and CDD, CFE, CPA(K) or equivalent.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous professional development in AML/CFT/CPF and customer due diligence.

go to method of application »

JOB PURPOSE

• The Senior Manager – KYC Advisory is responsible for providing expert, risk-based Know Your Customer (KYC), Customer Due Diligence (CDD) and Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) advisory, independent challenge and customer financial crime risk oversight across the Bank.
• The role ensures that complex and high-risk customer relationships are appropriately assessed, that beneficial ownership and customer risk-rating standards are robust, and that customer financial crime risks are managed within the Bank’s risk appetite, while First Line retains ownership of due diligence execution.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead independent specialist advice on complex customer onboarding, retention, high-risk relationships and financial crime risk acceptance.
• Challenge First Line due diligence for PEPs, high-risk jurisdictions, adverse media, source of funds and wealth, and complex customer structures.
• Advise on beneficial ownership and control tests, trusts, nominees, layered structures and escalation of opaque arrangements.
• Oversee the customer risk-rating methodology, risk factors, overrides and alignment with the Business-Wide Risk Assessment (BWRA) and risk appetite.
• Oversee periodic and event-driven review standards, KYC deficiencies and escalation arrangements.
• Provide technical input into KYC policies, digital onboarding, risk-rating tools, UBO capture and remediation programmes.
• Report material customer risks and advisory themes to Management and governance forums.
• Lead, develop and allocate resources across the KYC Advisory team.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Provide timely, documented and risk-based advisory opinions on complex and high-risk customer relationships.
• Ensure CDD and EDD standards for PEPs, high-risk jurisdictions, high-risk sectors, correspondent relationships and complex structures are robust and consistently applied.
• Challenge the adequacy of source of funds and source of wealth assessments, adverse media analysis and risk mitigation measures.
• Ensure beneficial ownership is identified and verified in line with the Companies Act, POCAMLA and CBK requirements, and escalate opaque arrangements.
• Oversee the customer risk-rating methodology, including risk factors, weightings, overrides and alignment with the BWRA.
• Provide Second Line input into high-risk customer acceptance and exit decisions within delegated authority.
• Oversee periodic and event-driven review standards and monitor the status of overdue reviews and KYC deficiencies.
• Provide technical input into KYC policies, procedures, digital onboarding journeys and new product approvals.
• Support KYC remediation programmes and validate the adequacy of remediation standards.
• Identify recurring KYC control weaknesses and themes, and ensure remediation is owned by accountable First Line functions.
• Escalate material customer financial crime risks and unresolved disagreements to the MLRO and Senior Management.
• Prepare MI on advisory volumes, high-risk customer populations, KYC deficiencies and emerging risk themes.
• Support regulatory inspections, audits and correspondent bank due diligence requests.
• Lead, mentor and develop the team, including performance management, capability building and succession planning.

Qualifications

CORE COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS

• Strong knowledge of AML/CFT/CPF laws, CBK Prudential Guidelines, FATF Standards and beneficial ownership requirements.
• Expertise in CDD, EDD, PEP assessment, source of funds and wealth analysis, and customer risk assessment.
• Strong understanding of complex legal structures, trusts, nominee arrangements and corporate ownership.
• Strong understanding of banking products, customer segments and financial crime typologies.
• Ability to provide clear, practical and defensible risk-based advice.
• Excellent report writing, Board reporting and executive communication skills.
• Strong stakeholder engagement, influencing and constructive challenge capability.
• Demonstrated leadership, people management and team development skills.
• High integrity, independence, sound judgement and decision-making capability.

 EXPERIENCE

• Minimum 10 years’ experience in AML/CFT/CPF, KYC, Financial Crime Compliance, Risk or Internal Audit within the financial services sector.
• At least 5 years’ experience in a management role.
• Demonstrated experience advising on complex onboarding, high-risk relationships, PEPs and beneficial ownership.
• Experience with customer risk-rating methodologies, KYC remediation and regulatory inspections.
• Prior experience in a Tier 1 bank and familiarity with CBK and FRC supervisory expectations will be an added advantage

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Law, Finance, Banking, Commerce, Accounting, Economics, Risk Management or a related field.
• Master’s degree in a relevant discipline will be an added advantage.
• Professional certifications such as CAMS, ICA Diploma in AML, ICA Certificate in KYC and CDD, CFE, CPA(K), ACCA or equivalent.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous professional development in AML/CFT/CPF and customer due diligence.

go to method of application »

JOB PURPOSE

• The Senior Manager – Testing (Data & Analytics) is responsible for independently evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of regulatory and financial crime controls using robust, data-driven Second Line testing methodologies.
• The role leads population-based testing, advanced analytics and continuous monitoring, delivers evidence-based findings and root cause analysis, independently validates remediation closure, and provides insight to Management and Board Committees on control effectiveness

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the risk-based, data-driven Second Line compliance testing methodology and annual analytics testing plan.
• Design population testing, statistical sampling, SQL and Python analytics, dashboards and reproducible control tests.
• Lead independent testing of KYC, CDD/EDD, beneficial ownership, customer risk rating, transaction monitoring, sanctions screening and regulatory reporting controls.
• Oversee source data reconciliation, completeness, lineage, analytical assumptions, script validation and data confidentiality.
• Develop continuous monitoring, reusable testing routines and controlled analytical innovation.
• Approve evidence-based findings, root cause analysis, severity ratings and independent closure validation.
• Present testing results and insights to Management and Board Committees.
• Lead, develop and allocate resources across the Testing (Data & Analytics) team.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Develop and maintain the compliance testing methodology covering test design, sampling, analytics, evidence standards, rating and reporting.
• Develop a risk-based annual testing plan aligned to the compliance risk assessment, regulatory priorities and inspection findings.
• Design and approve full-population and analytics-based tests that are documented, repeatable and reproducible.
• Lead independent testing of financial crime and regulatory controls, including KYC, CDD/EDD, UBO, risk rating, monitoring, screening and regulatory reporting.
• Ensure source data is reconciled, complete and traceable, and that analytical assumptions and scripts are validated and version-controlled.
• Ensure secure handling of customer and confidential data in line with the Data Protection Act and Bank policies.
• Build continuous control monitoring routines and reusable analytics to increase testing coverage and efficiency.
• Approve findings, root cause analysis and severity ratings, and agree remediation ownership with accountable First Line functions.
• Independently validate remediation evidence before closure of testing findings.
• Prepare testing MI, dashboards and thematic insights for Management, Board Committees and the Board.
• Coordinate with Internal Audit to avoid duplication while preserving the independence of each line of defence.
• Support regulatory inspections, audits and independent reviews by providing testing evidence and analytics.
• Promote the use of analytics tools, automation and data visualisation across the Compliance function.
• Lead, mentor and develop the team, including performance management, capability building and succession planning

Qualifications

CORE COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS

• Strong knowledge of Kenyan banking regulation, AML/CFT/CPF requirements and CBK and FRC expectations.
• Expertise in compliance testing methodology, control design and operating effectiveness assessment.
• Advanced SQL capability and proficiency in Python, R, SAS or comparable analytics tools.
• Experience with data visualisation tools such as Power BI and with statistical sampling techniques.
• Strong understanding of data lineage, reconciliation, data quality and reproducible analytics.
• Excellent report writing, Board reporting and executive communication skills.
• Strong stakeholder engagement, influencing and constructive challenge capability.
• Demonstrated leadership, people management and team development skills.
• High integrity, independence, professional scepticism and sound judgement.

EXPERIENCE

• Minimum 10 years’ experience in Compliance Testing, Internal Audit, Financial Crime Compliance, Risk or Data Analytics within the financial services sector.
• At least 5 years’ experience in a management role.
• Demonstrated experience leading data-driven control testing and analytics programmes.
• Proven experience presenting testing results to senior management and governance forums.
• Prior experience in a Tier 1 bank and familiarity with CBK and FRC supervisory expectations will be an added advantage.

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Statistics, Computer Science, Information Systems, Data Science or a related field.
• Master’s degree in a relevant discipline will be an added advantage.
• Professional certifications such as CISA, CIA, CAMS, CPA(K), ACCA or recognised data analytics certifications.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous professional development in compliance testing and data analytics.

go to method of application »

JOB PURPOSE

• The Manager – Project Management Office (PMO) is responsible for coordinating the governance, planning, tracking and reporting of complex regulatory remediation and compliance transformation programmes across the Bank.
• The role ensures that remediation commitments to regulators are delivered on time, that progress reporting is accurate and evidence-based, and that delays, risks and dependencies are escalated promptly, while accountability for delivery and remediation remains with the responsible owners.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Maintain PMO methodologies, project charters, workstream responsibilities, governance forums and standard templates.
• Coordinate tracking of regulatory inspection findings, supervisory commitments, integrated remediation plans and owners.
• Maintain milestones, critical paths, dependencies, change control and risk, issue and action registers.
• Coordinate evidence collection, closure criteria and independent validation of remediation.
• Prepare SteerCo, ExCo and Board Risk Committee dashboards, decision logs and exception reports.
• Challenge unsupported status updates and coordinate across Technology, Business, Risk, Compliance and Group.
• Supervise PMO analysts and improve delivery discipline and project tools.

Qualifications

CORE COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS

• Strong programme and project management capability, including planning, critical path and dependency management.
• Expertise in RAID management, change control and governance forum support.
• Good understanding of banking regulation, AML/CFT/CPF requirements and regulatory remediation.
• Strong executive dashboard, MI and Board paper preparation skills.
• Proficiency in project management tools and Microsoft Office, including Excel, PowerPoint and Project.
• Strong analytical, organisational and attention-to-detail capabilities.
• Effective stakeholder engagement, influencing and constructive challenge capability.
• Supervisory, coaching and team development skills.
• High integrity, accountability and sound judgement.

EXPERIENCE

• Minimum 7 years’ experience in Programme or Project Management, Regulatory Remediation, Compliance, Risk or Internal Audit within the financial services sector.
• At least 3 years’ experience in a supervisory or management role.
• Demonstrated experience running PMO governance for regulatory remediation or transformation programmes.
• Proven experience preparing SteerCo, ExCo and Board reporting.
• Prior experience in a Tier 1 bank and familiarity with CBK supervisory expectations will be an added advantage.

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Commerce, Economics, Information Systems or a related field.
• Master’s degree in a relevant discipline will be an added advantage.
• Professional certifications such as PMP, PRINCE2, MSP, Agile or equivalent; CAMS or ICA certification will be an added advantage