ACFCS appoints Barry Koch, Chief Compliance Officer at Western Union, to Advisory Board

MIAMI - Aug. 29, 2013 - PRLog -- MIAMI – The Association of Certified Financial Crime Specialists today announced the appointment of Barry M. Koch, Chief Compliance Officer of Western Union and a renowned financial crime and anti-money laundering compliance expert, to its Advisory Board.

Koch is the first member of the ACFCS Advisory Board from a major organization in the money services business sector. Western Union operates approximately 520,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories.

“Barry Koch is an internationally recognized expert in financial crime issues with many years of experience in risk management and anti-money laundering compliance,” said Charles Intriago, president of ACFCS and a former federal prosecutor. “We are fortunate to have the benefit of his advice and wisdom in guiding ACFCS and its worldwide membership.”

Koch joins 23 other renowned experts on the ACFCS Advisory Board who have invaluable experience in dealing with all aspects of financial crime at various types of financial institutions and government agencies throughout the world.

About Barry M. Koch

Western Union’s Chief Compliance Officer, leading a global team of more than 1,100 compliance professionals, he is a sought-after speaker at industry, government and law enforcement conferences, having presented to groups including the United States Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, State and Treasury; the IRS and DEA; members of the intelligence and diplomatic communities; the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; and regulators, legislators, international organizations and Financial Intelligence Units around the world.

Mr. Koch recently addressed a plenary session of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime/OSCE’s Expert Seminar on Leveraging Anti-Money Laundering Regimes to Combat Human Trafficking, and the National Association of Attorneys General Presidential Initiative Summit—Pillars of Hope: Attorneys General United Against Human Trafficking; and the second crime summit’s Investigating and Prosecuting Sex Trafficking: A Collaborative Approach, hosted by the New York County District Attorney’s Office and the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

Mr. Koch has served as Chairman of the New York State Bar Association’s Committee on the United Nations and Other International Organizations, as Chairman of The Consular Law Society, Inc., and as Legal Counsel to The Society of Foreign Consuls in New York. He has also taught courses in International Business Law as a member of the adjunct faculty of Fordham University’s Graduate School of Business Administration.

He received his Juris Doctor degree from the New York University School of Law, and his Bachelor of Arts degree magna cum laude from the University at Albany. He is a licensed pilot and motorcycle enthusiast.

About ACFCS

ACFCS is a member organization that provides training, news, analysis and networking to its worldwide membership and followers of professionals in the financial crime control field. ACFCS awards the Certified Financial Crime Specialist (CFCS) certification to persons who meet specify qualifications and who pass a thorough examination that is offered at more than 700 authorized testing centers worldwide. It is the first credential that tests competence and skill across the financial crime spectrum, including money laundering, corruption, tax evasion-FATCA and other fields. Persons in 55 countries have earned the certification or registered to take the CFCS exam.

Visit ACFCS.org (http://www.acfcs.org/) for more information.