Sanctions Compliance: Regulatory Expectations and Practical Controls

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Course Overview

Sanctions compliance remains a rapidly evolving and high-risk area for UK-regulated financial services firms, with significant legal, regulatory, and reputational consequences for failure. This interactive, workshop-led course is designed for senior compliance and financial crime professionals who are responsible for overseeing sanctions risk and advising Boards and senior management on exposure across customers, transactions, and third-party relationships.

The course provides a practical overview of UK and key international sanctions regimes and examines how targeted financial sanctions, trade-based restrictions, and country-wide measures impact financial services activity. It focuses on how to design, operate, and evidence a proportionate, risk-based sanctions compliance framework, covering governance, risk assessment, screening, escalation, and regulatory reporting.

Strong emphasis is placed on evidencing judgement, senior oversight, and control effectiveness. Participants will leave with the insight and tools needed to develop or enhance a clear, defensible sanctions compliance approach aligned with current regulatory expectations.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

• Understand the structure and application of UK and key international sanctions regimes
• Identify sanctions risks across customers, transactions, products, and third-party relationships
• Apply a risk-based approach to the design and operation of sanctions compliance frameworks
• Assess the effectiveness of sanctions screening tools, alert handling, and escalation processes
• Understand reporting and notification obligations arising from sanctions breaches or suspicions
• Evaluate governance, accountability, and senior management oversight of sanctions risk
• Evidence defensible sanctions decision-making to regulators, auditors, and Boards

Who this course is for

This workshop is designed for professionals with responsibility for sanctions and financial crime oversight, including:

• Heads of Compliance and Financial Crime
• Sanctions and Financial Crime specialists
• MLROs and Deputy MLROs with sanctions oversight responsibilities
• Senior Compliance and Risk Managers
• Payments, Trade Finance, and Correspondent Banking professionals
• Internal audit and assurance professionals
• Senior managers accountable for sanctions compliance

The course is particularly relevant for UK-regulated firms seeking to strengthen sanctions controls, respond to evolving geopolitical risk, and demonstrate robust, regulator-ready oversight.