Senior Financial Crime Investigator

As a Financial Crime Senior Investigator, you’ll be part of Financial Crime Operations within Risk Operations, playing a vital role in safeguarding Nationwide and its members from financial crime. This includes protecting the organisation against money laundering, terrorist financing, sanctions breaches, and bribery and corruption, while delivering first-line prevention and detection activity that makes a real difference.

You’ll bring a sharp eye for detail and the confidence to clearly articulate your findings, whether in writing or conversation. Excellent time management and prioritisation skills are essential, as you’ll work autonomously, adapt to regular change, support colleagues, and help maintain high standards through quality checking and involvement in project work. Just as important are your communication and stakeholder management skills, enabling you to build trusted relationships across the business.

In this role, you’ll act as a financial crime specialist for first-line colleagues, providing expert support and serving as the first point of escalation for financial crime concerns. We’re looking for someone who thrives on problem-solving, enjoys collaborating with others, and takes pride in delivering thorough, accurate work in a fast-paced and evolving environment.

We are happy to consider flexible working approaches to help you perform at your best.

At Nationwide we offer hybrid working wherever possible. More rewarding relationships are supported through our hybrid approach, bringing colleagues together across our UK wide estate, whilst also supporting generous access to home working. We value our time in the office to solve problems, to learn, and to feel connected. 

For this job you'll be located at our nearest regional office or hub. There will be a need to regularly connect with colleagues for collaboration and in some locations you’ll be expected to spend at least two days a week, or if part time you'll spend 40% of your working time, in the office. If your application is successful, your hiring manager will provide further details on how this works.  

Virgin Money is now part of Nationwide 

Nationwide acquired Virgin Money in October 2024. Virgin Money continues to serve customers on the high street, and there will be a phased and considered integration over the coming years. 

You’ll be employed by Nationwide from day one, delivering real impact and benefitting from a highly competitive range of benefits. We’re a workplace where you’re rewarded, recognised and celebrated. 

Nationwide is committed to the redeployment of our employees impacted by change, as such applications for redeployment candidates will be prioritised in this recruitment process. 

If you’re a colleague on long-term absence (for example, on parental leave) or a temporary worker, please use your personal email address to submit an application. 

Responsibilities

What you’ll be doing

You’ll deliver high-quality 1st line financial crime activity that protects both the organisation and its customers. This includes working with the 2nd line Financial Crime team to provide advice and guidance to Financial Crime Investigators, documenting the guidance to strengthen financial crime controls to prevent future reoccurrence where possible through consistent, accurate rationale, and constructive feedback and coaching. Throughout, you’ll ensure regulatory and policy requirements are met while maintaining a strong focus on service quality and customer experience.

Working closely with 2nd line Financial Crime teams, you’ll ensure working practices support Management Information (MI) production through accurate and timely completion of tasks and assist Financial Crime Managers in the collation and production of MI and other controls.

You’ll be a Subject Matter Expert in Financial Crime processes and procedures and actively contribute to keeping these current, up-to-date and policy compliant, review escalated high-risk cases, and support effective MI through accurate and timely task completion, embedding strong financial crime standards across the operation.

About you

As a minimum requirement, you will bring:

• Proven experience within a financial crime environment, gained in Client Screening, Payment Filtering, Transaction Monitoring, or Anti-Money Laundering-focused role, with a solid understanding of regulatory expectations and financial crime controls

• Strong analytical capability, with the confidence to review and interpret large, complex datasets and translate your findings into clear, concise, and meaningful outputs. You’ll be comfortable using PowerPoint to present insights and have intermediate Excel skills to support effective data analysis

• The ability to evaluate information critically, drawing well-reasoned conclusions and practical recommendations based on facts, evidence, and data, even where information may be incomplete or nuanced

• Experience delivering structured coaching and constructive feedback, with the ability to support development, manage individual performance, and raise capability and confidence across colleagues and teams

Our customer first behaviours put customers and members at the heart of how we work together. They are the set of behaviours that every colleague needs to display, in every role:

• Feel what customers feel - We step into our customers’ shoes, using their feedback and insights to empathise with them and to understand their needs, so that every decision we make starts and finishes with our customers in mind

• Say it straight - We are brave in speaking out and saying what we think – we’re honest and direct with good intent, openly sharing diverse perspectives to reach the best conclusions and using language everyone can understand

• Push for better - We don’t settle for mediocrity, we challenge the status quo, taking responsibility for continuous improvement and personal development

• Get it done - We prioritise what will have the greatest impact, we are decisive, and we take accountability for delivering brilliant customer outcomes

You can strengthen your application by showing how our customer first behaviours resonate with you, and where you may have already demonstrated these.

Qualifications

The extras you’ll get

There are all sorts of employee benefits available at Nationwide, including:

• 25 days holiday, pro rata

• Access to private medical insurance

• A highly competitive pension to help you build a strong foundation for retirement

• Access to an annual performance-related bonus

• Training and development to help you progress your career

• A great selection of additional benefits through our salary sacrifice scheme

• Life assurance to provide peace of mind for you and your loved ones in the event of your death

• Wellhub – access to a range of free and paid options for health and wellness

• Up to 2 days of paid volunteering a year

Banking – but fairer, more rewarding, and for the good of society

We forge our own path at Nationwide.

As a mutual, we’re owned by our members - those customers who bank, save or have a mortgage with us. We challenge the financial sector status quo. We don’t see customers as the engine of our own profit. We share our profits with them and put their needs first. Always there when they need us. Supporting them and their lives.

If you’re inspired by fairer finances, passionate about making a meaningful impact, and truly care about our customers, you’re one of us.

At Nationwide, you are challenged to grow and rewarded for doing so. Valued. Recognised. Inspired to be your best. As a community, we want our working lives to count. As a team, we celebrate what we achieve. As a standard-setter, we work for the good of customers, communities, and broader society.

We are purpose-driven. Uncompromisingly customer. Unstoppably Nationwide.

What to do next

If this role is for you, please click the ‘Apply Now’ button. You’ll need to attach your up-to-date CV and answer a few quick questions for us. 

We respond to everyone, so we will be in contact shortly after the closing date to let you know the outcome of your application.

The hiring manager for this role is Angela Hayes, and the main recruitment contact is Andrew Ducker.