Associate, Financial Crimes Compliance

About the role

Vestwell is seeking a Financial Crimes Compliance Associate to join the Legal and Compliance Team. In this role you will own day-to-day fraud detection and anti‑money laundering operations across all three business lines, manage fraud risk, ensure regulatory compliance, and work cross‑functionally with Client, Operations and Services Teams. The position reports to the Manager of Financial Crimes Compliance and will have a significant impact on understanding, analyzing and controlling key risk as the company scales.

Responsibilities

• Analyze daily high‑risk fraud indicators and surveillance reports to identify suspicious activity, applying critical thinking and regulatory knowledge to assess potential risk.
• Identify emerging fraud patterns and trends (typology development) and communicate them for adaptations to reporting and training materials.
• Interpret applicable financial crimes and anti‑money laundering regulations and apply them to business operations and client activity to ensure compliance and mitigate risk.
• Review, research, and respond to escalated surveillance and screening alerts; prepare detailed escalation memos to alert clients or internal stakeholders of potential suspicious activity.
• Partner with Client, Operations, and Services Teams to track, research, and resolve inquiries, complaints, and escalations related to potential financial crimes.
• Maintain accurate records of suspicious activity investigations and prepare data for management and client reporting.
• Collaborate on improving procedures, workflows, and platform features to enhance efficiency and effectiveness of security reviews; support Legal and Compliance team initiatives to scale financial crime mitigation strategies.
• Exercise discretion and analytical judgment when reviewing alerts, escalating issues, and recommending procedural or operational improvements.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, finance and/or criminal justice.
• Experience performing fraud detection or anti‑money laundering functions.
• Comfort working in a fast‑paced start‑up environment with a substantial degree of autonomy.
• Exceptional analytical and detail‑oriented aptitude; high degree of accuracy required.
• Strong critical‑thinking skills, with ability to analyze information, identify patterns, and make sound, evidence‑based decisions.
• Ability to manage time effectively, set priorities, and meet deadlines.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Proficiency with productivity tools, especially JIRA.
• Experience with research tools like LexisNexis.
• Experience working at a financial institution, fintech, or high‑growth startup (preferred).
• Experience drafting SARs or responding to FinCEN 314(a) requests (preferred).
• Familiarity with identity‑verification platforms such as Plaid or Persona (preferred).

Benefits

Vestwell prioritizes employee wellbeing through comprehensive health benefits, generous time off, and a dedicated Employee Wellbeing Committee. The hybrid work model offers flexibility while providing access to collaborative offices in Midtown Manhattan, Austin, King of Prussia, and Scottsdale. As a company focused on helping people save for the future, Vestwell offers a competitive 401(k) plan.

Pay

The expected base salary range for this position is $60K – $70K base. The role is eligible to participate in the Company Bonus Pool and to receive new hire equity.