Compliance Officer / Money Laundering Reporting Officer (CO/MLRO) - BitGo MENA

BitGo is the leading infrastructure provider of digital asset solutions, delivering custody, wallets, staking, trading, financing, and settlement services from regulated cold storage. Since our founding in 2013, we have focused on enabling our clients to securely navigate the digital asset space. With a global presence and multiple Trust companies, BitGo serves thousands of institutions, including many of the industry's top brands, exchanges, and platforms, and millions of retail investors worldwide. As the operational backbone of the digital economy, BitGo handles a significant portion of Bitcoin network transactions and is the largest independent digital asset custodian, and staking provider, in the world. For more information, visit www.bitgo.com.

BitGo MENA is seeking an experienced Compliance Analyst to assume the role of Compliance Officer (CO) and Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) in accordance with the requirements of the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).

This role will be responsible for leading and managing the end-to-end compliance and AML/CFT framework for BitGo MENA, ensuring full alignment with applicable UAE laws, VARA rulebooks, and international best practices. The individual will act as the primary regulatory liaison and will play a key role in maintaining the firm’s regulatory standing, governance, and risk management framework.

Key Responsibilities

Regulatory & Governance

• Act as the approved Compliance Officer and MLRO for VARA-regulated entity.
• Serve as the primary point of contact with VARA.
• Ensure ongoing compliance with VARA Rulebooks, including Compliance & Risk Management, Custody, and Market Conduct requirements.
• Lead regulatory submissions.
• Support Board and senior management with compliance reporting, governance updates, and regulatory developments.
  
  

AML/CFT & Financial Crime Compliance

• Maintain and enhance the firm’s AML/CFT framework in line with:
• UAE Federal AML laws
• FATF recommendations
• VARA AML Rulebook
• Act as MLRO, including:
• Oversight of transaction monitoring and investigations

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• Filing Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) via goAML
• Managing sanctions screening and escalation processes
• Oversee and continuously improve the Enterprise-Wide Risk Assessment (EWRA) and Business Risk Assessment (BRA).
  
  

Compliance Program & Controls

• Develop, implement, and maintain policies and procedures across:
• AML/CFT
• Market conduct and market abuse
• Client onboarding and KYC/CDD/EDD
• And operational compliance
• Monitor effectiveness of controls and ensure remediation of identified gaps.
• Coordinate internal and external audits (including AML audits and VARA-related reviews).
• Maintain compliance monitoring and testing programs.
  
  

Operational & Product Compliance

• Provide compliance oversight on:

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• Broker-dealer activities (riskless principal model, settlement flows)
• New products and services (including token listings)
• Assess regulatory impact of new initiatives and provide clear compliance guidance.
  
  

Advisory & Stakeholder Management

• Act as a trusted advisor to senior management and global teams.
• Work closely with Legal, Risk, Operations, and Product teams to embed compliance into business processes.
• Provide training and awareness across the organization on compliance and AML topics.
  
  

Requirements

• Minimum 3+ years of experience in Compliance / AML / Financial Crime, preferably within financial services, fintech, or virtual assets.
• Experience acting as or supporting a Compliance Officer and/or MLRO.
• Strong knowledge of:
• Strong understanding of KYC/CDD/EDD, transaction monitoring, and sanctions frameworks.
  
  

Nice to Have

• Experience in the Virtual Assets / Crypto / Blockchain industry.
• Familiarity with blockchain analytics tools (e.g., Elliptic, TRM Labs).
• Professional certifications such as:
• Experience working in a regulated VASP environment under VARA or equivalent regulators (e.g., ADGM, FSRA).
  
  

Why Join BitGo?

Disrupting an industry takes vision, innovation, passion, technical chops, drive to deliver, collaboration, and execution. Join a team of great people who strive for excellence and personify our corporate values of ownership, craftsmanship, and open communication. We are looking for new colleagues who bring innovative ways of thinking and problem solving, and who want risks to be part of the team that changes the world’s financial markets.

Benefits:

• Competitive base salary, bonus and stock options
• 100% company paid health insurance for employee and dependents
• Fully sponsored work visas
• Paid parental leave, Paid vacation
• Paid lunches and snacks
• Great colleagues and inspiring startup environment
• *Benefits may vary based on location
  
  

Cryptocurrencies are the most disruptive change the financial services industry has seen in years. Join us and you’ll be able to look back and say you were part of the team that transformed investing.