Norton Rose hires consultants from AlixPartners and PwC

20 November 2019 Consultancy.uk

Law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has expanded its risk consulting practice with the appointment of two senior consultants. Both John Coley and Sven Stumbauer bring 20 years of experience in risk consulting to their roles with the company.

Money laundering is the concealment of the origins of illegally obtained money, which typically takes the form of transfers involving foreign banks or legitimate businesses. In a globalised world, the movement of capital across borders has become easier and more common than any time in human history. In this environment, money laundering has boomed. Global money laundering transactions are estimated to be as high as 5% of global GDP, or roughly $1-2 trillion annually, while according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, under 1% of global illicit financial flows are currently being seized by authorities.

This is unsurprisingly having a notable impact on international corporations. According to one survey, by AlixPartners, businesses are finding it tougher than ever before to steer clear of this potential risk. 67% believed there are locations where it is impossible to avoid corrupt business practices, namely Russia (35%), Africa (33%) and China (27%). As a result of this, the work of consultants who can help realise holistic and comprehensive business solutions to minimise this risk has become highly sought after.

Norton Rose hires consultants from AlixPartners and PwC

Norton Rose Fulbright is one firm which is looking to support its clients in this regard. An integral part of the firm’s risk advisory offering, the firm’s global risk practice features a team of non-legal consultants, including compliance professionals and ex-regulators, who have a wide range of expertise across all industry sectors. The multi-disciplinary team subsequently is able to offers clients both practical and tailored solutions, aimed at addressing key risks such as compliance with money laundering regulations.

To boost its operations in this area, Norton Rose Fulbright has confirmed the hiring of two professionals from AlixPartners and PwC.

Based in the UK, John Coley is now the Head of EMEA – Regulatory Compliance Consulting at Norton Rose Fulbright. He was previously a Director in the financial services risk and regulatory practice at PwC. Over the course of his career, he has accrued more than 20 years of experience in financial services regulation. Alongside his eight years with the Big Four firm, this also includes working at the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as an Associate. He has also worked across governance, risk and compliance including leading a range of regulatory reviews, business transformation and operating model changes.

Meanwhile, US-based Sven Stumbauer joins Norton Rose Fulbright from AlixPartners, where he built and led the firm’s global anti-money laundering and sanctions practice. Like Coley, he brings more than 20 years of experience serving clients in the financial services industry in the US and globally, including as a regulator in the US. He also spent time at the Big Four, with an eight-year spell as Director at KPMG’s US wing. His addition helps further grow Norton Rose Fulbright’s financial services capabilities into AML and financial crime.

Jonathan Herbst, Partner and Global Head of Financial Services at Norton Rose Fulbright, said, “Regulators around the world have their sights set squarely on conduct, effective governance, individual accountability and financial crime risks. Against this backdrop, financial institutions and corporations require a comprehensive and dynamic approach to risk management. Our risk consulting practice offers clients across all industry sectors integrated, business-focused advice on the design and implementation of robust compliance programmes and risk management frameworks.”