The National Institute of Banking and Finance (NIBAF) Pakistan conducted a one-day professional training program titled “Compliance Goals vs. Money Laundering Schemes” on December 17, 2025, at its Karachi campus. The session brought together compliance professionals, regulators, and practitioners from across Pakistan’s financial sector to examine the growing complexity of financial crime risks and the evolving demands of regulatory compliance.
Held in a face-to-face format, the training reflected NIBAF’s continued emphasis on hands-on learning and direct engagement with industry stakeholders. Participants included representatives from commercial banks, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), and other financial institutions, highlighting the program’s relevance across both supervisory and operational domains.
The session was led by Mr. Usman Ali Khan, a seasoned professional with extensive experience in compliance, anti-money laundering (AML), and counter-terrorist financing (CFT) frameworks. During the training, he provided an in-depth overview of how money laundering schemes continue to adapt in response to tighter regulatory controls and increased scrutiny by financial authorities. He emphasized that while compliance frameworks are becoming more robust, criminal networks are also becoming more sophisticated, requiring institutions to continuously reassess and strengthen their controls.
A key focus of the training was the alignment, and at times the tension, between formal compliance objectives and real-world money laundering typologies. Participants were guided through practical examples demonstrating how gaps in internal controls, weak customer due diligence, or over-reliance on checklist-based compliance can expose institutions to significant regulatory and reputational risk. The discussion underscored the importance of moving beyond procedural compliance toward a risk-based and intelligence-driven approach.
The program also examined emerging trends in financial crime, including the misuse of digital channels, trade-based money laundering, and complex layering techniques designed to obscure the origin of illicit funds. Participants explored how these schemes challenge traditional monitoring systems and why continuous upskilling of compliance teams is critical in today’s rapidly changing financial environment.
In addition, the training highlighted the role of effective risk management in supporting AML and CFT objectives. Mr. Khan stressed that compliance functions must work closely with business, operations, and technology teams to ensure that controls are embedded across the institution rather than operating in silos. He also discussed the expectations of regulators, particularly the SBP, in terms of governance, documentation, and the timely identification and reporting of suspicious transactions.
Participants actively engaged in discussions on regulatory expectations, enforcement actions, and best practices for strengthening internal compliance cultures. The interactive nature of the session allowed attendees to share challenges faced by their institutions and to learn from peer experiences, reinforcing the value of collective capacity building across the financial sector.
NIBAF’s initiative reflects the broader push within Pakistan’s financial system to enhance resilience against financial crime and to align local practices with international standards. As regulatory scrutiny intensifies globally, such training programs play a crucial role in equipping financial institutions with the knowledge and skills required to manage compliance risks effectively.
By convening stakeholders from banks, regulators, and financial institutions under one platform, the training reaffirmed the importance of collaboration in safeguarding the integrity of Pakistan’s financial system. NIBAF indicated that similar capacity-building initiatives will continue as part of its mandate to support the development of a strong, compliant, and forward-looking banking and financial sector.
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