Hiring an AML / KYC analyst for an EMI: what to check before the interview

AfterWorc team · 15 Sept 2026 · 2 min read

Look for experience in your business model, not only the job title.
Ask for real cases: how they escalated, documented and closed alerts.
Check references with someone who reviewed their work.

For an electronic money institution, the AML / KYC function is part of how you keep your licence. The wrong hire creates backlogs and weak case files that show up in audits.

What to look for on the CV

experience with your customer type: consumers, merchants or business accounts
the tools they used for screening and transaction monitoring
whether they closed alerts themselves or only did first-line checks
languages that match your customers and documents

Questions that reveal real experience

Walk me through an alert you escalated. What made it suspicious, and what did you write in the case?
How do you handle a customer who refuses to explain a source of funds?
What does a good periodic review look like for a high-risk business customer?
How did you keep up when alert volumes doubled?

Strong candidates answer with specifics: thresholds, documents, timelines, who signed off.

Red flags

they cannot describe a single case in detail
they treat screening hits as a formality
no experience writing decisions down

Check it before you rely on it

Call a reference who reviewed their work, not only a colleague. Ask whether their case files were accepted without rework.