Compliance Trainee London 2023

Our ambition is to be a leading responsible asset manager.

At AXA IM, our purpose, to act for human progress by investing for what matters, is central to every action we take as a business.
As a responsible asset manager, we actively invest for the long-term to help our clients, our people and the world to prosper.

Our conviction-led approach enables us to uncover what we believe to be the best global investment opportunities across alternative and core asset classes. We are already entrusted with €824 billion in assets (as of end of December 2022).

Working as part of the AXA Group, a world leader in financial protection, our team of over 2,600 people (as of end of December 2022) around the world combine a range of specialist skills and experience to best serve the needs of our clients.

The combination of responsible, active and long-term defines our investment philosophy, but also how we run our business, what underpins our clients’ partnerships with us, and what drives our people.

Being responsible is in our DNA as a firm and is central to our ethos as an employer. It is embedded in how we grow and protect our people. It unites our team, from our leaders, to our growing number of specialists, to the newest members of our teams.

Empowering our people to drive progress

As part of a responsible, progressive organisation, our people help us to invest for what matters. Everyone in our diverse, global family shares this responsibility.

Together our people push boundaries and drive forward ideas. They’re willing to be bold and take the lead, using initiative and enterprise to create exceptional service. The kind of service that seeks to drive long-term prosperity for our clients, society and the world we live in.

Diversity and inclusion

Thrive within a diverse community. At AXA IM, inclusion and diversity are closely linked to our values and to our culture of respect for employees, clients and the communities around us.

We always aim to create an environment where everyone feels they belong, are included and can thrive within a diverse community.

Programme information

You will join as a trainee as part of the Investment20/20 one-year trainee programme. While we can’t guarantee a permanent position at the end of the 12-month contract, however, if you perform well & if we have an open position available at the time, then permanent employment could be a possibility. The Investment20/20 trainee programme is offered by many investment management firms and 75% of the 2,500 Investment20/20 trainees are offered permanent positions at the end of the one year.

As a trainee, you will be introduced to investment management and you will gain industry knowledge, experience and develop relationships to progress your career and develop skills to secure a permanent role.

We will support you in achieving/starting a professional qualification if this is something you are interested in doing (most firms offer it and we highly recommend doing so). As part of the Investment20/20 programme, you will have opportunities to meet and network with over 300 trainees across the industry and participate in socials and insight events.

Our trainee programme is a fixed term one-year contract paying £26,000. You will receive 27 days annual leave. All roles are based in London.

The purpose of the role

The trainee will be acting as a support to the Compliance perimeter for AXA IM UK and AXA IM GS supporting all 4 Compliance sub teams in daily activities as well as the UK Head of Compliance .

The role will be providing a broad scope with time to develop experience and understanding of all areas of compliance, to develop knowledge of UK regulatory environment and current regulatory hot topics such as sustainability with the opportunity to interact with all areas of the firm and develop understanding of the asset management industry and operational process.

Responsibilities 

The trainee will be required to spend a period of time in each of the 4 Compliance sub teams as well as assisting the UK Head of Compliance as set out below.

Financial crime team

• Assist with management of Sanctions alerts
• Assist with Compliance reviews of KYC and client financial crime due diligence
• Manage Political exposed person (PEP) register
• Assist with preparation of Fin Crime risk assessment for new business opportunities and client relationships including Global New business committee (GNBC) process
• Assist with management of Data Protection framework including reviews of breaches and Data subject access requests (DSARs)
• Assist with Financial Crime training programme including preparation and delivery of classroom-based training to the business

Funds and distribution team

• Assist with reviews of financial promotions and marketing materials
• Assist with preparation of fund applications to the FCA
• Assist with compliance and regulatory risk assessment for new fund and/or distribution arrangement for GNBC process

Regulatory risk and review

• Assist with regulatory horizon scanning and assessment of new or changing regulations
• Support compliance to the Sustainable Directive Regulation (SDR) project
• Assist with conducting thematic Compliance reviews across the business

Compliance advisory and surveillance team

• Assist with management of Star Compliance* and Code of Ethics Framework
• Assist with Compliance surveillance framework including investigation of market abuse alerts assigned to the UK team
• Assist with compliance and regulatory risk assessment for new mandates for GNBC process

UK head of compliance

• Assist the UK Head of UK Compliance in the preparing reporting and provision of management information to governance committees and senior management to demonstrate compliance or to highlight issues or trends where appropriate.
• Assist the UK Head of Compliance with the preparation and co-ordination of the monthly UK Compliance team meeting

*Star Compliance: Internal Code of Ethics tool/software.

Qualifications

Education/qualifications

• No specific job experience is required

Knowledge and skills

• The ability to build business relationships
• Good communication skills, both oral and in writing, with the ability to work across different jurisdictions
• A pragmatic and common-sense approach to solving business problems
• Flexible team approach
• Good judgement
• Strong sense of integrity and ethics

How to apply

If you are a Graduate apply online with your CV and a cover letter including your answers to the following three questions in 250 words each answer:

• Why are you applying for this particular traineeship?
• Tell us about the most interesting project or piece of work you have completed as part of your studies at either school/college or university. What did you have to do and what interested you most about it?

We are an inclusive employer. Please let the recruitment team know if you have a disability, condition or difference that may require us to make adjustments.

Successful candidates will be asked to attend a competency interview followed by further operational interviews and an HR interview at the end of the process. Unsuccessful candidates at CV submission stage will be notified by email.

About AXA

Would you like to wake up every day driven and inspired by our noble mission and to work together as one global team to empower people to live a better life? Here at AXA we strive to lead the transformation of our industry.

We are looking for talented individuals who come from varied backgrounds, think differently and want to be part of this exciting transformation by challenging the status quo so we can push AXA - a leading global brand and one of the most innovative companies in our industry - onto even greater things.

In a fast-evolving world and with a presence in 64 countries, our 166,000 employees and exclusive distributors anticipate change to offer services and solutions tailored to the current and future needs of our 103 million customers.

AXA Investment Managers (AXA IM) is a responsible asset manager, actively investing for the long-term to help its clients, its people and the world to prosper. Our high conviction approach enables us to uncover what we believe to be the best global investment opportunities across alternative and traditional asset classes, managing approximately €824 billion in assets as at the end of December 2022. AXA IM is a leading investor in green, social and sustainable markets, managing €489 billion of ESG-integrated, sustainable or impact assets as at the end of December 2022.

We are committed to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 across all our assets, and integrating ESG principles into our business, from stock selection to our corporate actions and culture. Our goal is to provide clients with a true value responsible investment solution, while driving meaningful change for society and the environment.

At end of December 2022, AXA IM employs over 2,600 employees around the world, operates out of 24 offices across 18 countries and is part of the AXA Group, a worldwide leader in insurance and asset management.

What we offer

We are proud to foster a high-performance culture, which means that we seek to recruit and retain people who are not only technically-skilled but also globally-minded, innovative and able to leverage their unique perspectives and life experiences to support our success as a company.

Employing the best professionals from the widest possible talent pool is at the heart of our strategy of delivering excellent quality of service to our diverse clientele.