Charles

I am Head of Compliance for Goldman Sachs International and oversee the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region. We have a team of over 100 people in the region, which covers many countries and over 40 regulators. Our primary function is to ensure that the firm complies with the rules and regulations of our industry. Most important, we help ensure that the firm’s reputation is protected, and we are a trusted adviser to the business.

The variety of activities we cover is very broad; every day provides new challenges and interests. I have grown accustomed to the unpredictability of financial markets but sometimes dealing with regions newer to us comes with new practicalities to get accustomed to as well – for example, when flying from Dubai to Moscow last February, I found there was a 48 degree Celsius temperature change to deal with!

We have constant dialogue with the business side of the firm. We also interact with many other parts of the firm including Legal, Financial Controllers, Operations and Human Capital Management, as well as external financial regulators, exchanges and law firms.