Danske Bank’s customer protection centre in Ulster will implement new anti-money laundering and financial crime legislation.
Danske Bank has revealed today (5 September) that it will set up a new customer protection centre in Derry, creating 67 new roles. Recruitment for these positions has already begun, and it is expected that all of the roles will be filled by 2020.
The customer protection centre will be based in the upper floors of Danske Bank’s Shipquay Place building in Derry’s city centre.
The centre will complete due diligence checks on personal and business customers. These checks are done to fulfil regulation that requires banks to have an increased responsibility for knowing and understanding how customers operate their bank accounts.
As part of this process, banks now review customer information on an ongoing basis to ensure it is accurate. Banks also must regularly review sources of wealth in accordance with anti-money laundering legislation. The new Derry-based team will supplement the work being done currently by teams in Lithuania and Poland.
Invest Northern Ireland (NI) has offered Danske Bank £234,500 towards the creation of the roles. The NI department for the economy is providing £98,000 of assured skills funding, which will go towards providing 40 new employees with necessary training. In total, £332,500 of funding has been offered to Danske Bank. Once fully operational, the centre will generate nearly £1.5m worth of salaries annually for the local economy.
Jeremy Fitch, executive director of business and sector development at Invest NI, said: “This is a new and emerging function for Danske Bank operations throughout Europe in response to new financial crime and anti-money laundering legislation.
“As well as offering starting salaries in the region of £17,000 to £18,000, those joining the team in the north-west will receive high-quality induction training [and] enjoy a modern working environment, competitive pension benefits, healthcare benefit and a defined career path.”
Danske Bank is the biggest bank in Northern Ireland, with an extensive network of branches and business centres that employ about 1,400 staff.
“We are delighted to be supporting the economy in [Northern Ireland],” said Stephen Matchett, Danske Bank’s chief financial officer. “Our successful bid for this new centre to be located here, rather than at one of the Danske Bank Group’s existing European centres, ensures that we remain close to our customer base in Northern Ireland.
“This new team in Derry … will initially be responsible for completing the checks for customers here in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and London.”
