MIAMI, Nov. 07, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ACAMS, a leading membership organization dedicated to supporting anti-financial crime (AFC) professionals globally, has awarded its new CCAS Scholarship to 30 Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) compliance practitioners and a separate individual who won under a special category created for applicants from conflict zones. Under the global scholarship program, the 31 winners will receive a one-year membership to ACAMS and a full waiver of all fees associated with the newly launched Certified Cryptoasset AFC Specialist (CCAS) credential, including access to the program’s study materials and Virtual Classroom series.
The scholarship winners, selected by a panel of judges out of a pool of 679 applicants, will be among the first anti-financial crime (AFC) professionals in the world to seek the new CCAS certification by training on the anti-money laundering (AML) controls and risk-management procedures linked to common illicit-finance typologies in the crypto space, strategies to monitor and track related blockchain payments, and relevant applications of machine-learning and artificial-intelligence tools, among other topics.
The six judges, including external subject-matter experts working in the cryptoasset sector, identified 30 BIPOC winners across 19 jurisdictions based on their video responses to application questions and their eligibility to participate in the CCAS program. The panel separately named a winner from Ukraine for a new scholarship category created to support applicants working under crisis conditions in a major conflict zone.
First announced in July, the CCAS Scholarship program comes as part of the ACAMS commitment to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) throughout the global AFC space. The initiative is the second of its kind for the association following the launch in June 2021 of the CAFCA Scholarship, which waived costs for 30 BIPOC professionals seeking the Certified AML FinTech Compliance Associate (CAFCA) credential.
“When ACAMS committed in 2020 to promoting DEI throughout the AFC sector, it was a promise to drive meaningful change for our community,” said ACAMS CEO Scott Liles. “As the nearly 700 applicants for our new scholarship can attest, diversity strengthens AFC efforts by bringing in fresh eyes and expanding on the personal experiences and skillsets that compliance teams bring to the table.”
“The launch of our new specialist-level crypto certification proved to be the perfect chance to marry our DEI efforts with opportunities for professional advancement in one of the most dynamic and fast-moving parts of the AFC ecosphere,” he said.
The judges for the CCAS Scholarship were Chief Judge Lash Kaur, Vice President of Global Strategic Communications & DEI, ACAMS, Shilpa Arora, Senior Director of AFC Segment Solutions, ACAMS, Caryn Leong, Director of AML in APAC, ACAMS, Karla Monterrosa-Yancey, Editor-in-Chief of ACAMS Today, Stephen Brent Sargeant, Founder and Chief Web3 Officer at Airdropd, and Beatrice Migale, Manager of Sanctions, Anti-Bribery and Anti-Corruption at a Toronto-based financial institution.
See the winners of the CCAS Scholarship here.
Find out more about the CCAS program here.
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About ACAMS®
ACAMS is a leading international membership organization dedicated to providing opportunities for anti-financial crime (AFC) education, best practices, and peer-to-peer networking to AFC professionals globally. With over 100,000 members across 180 jurisdictions, ACAMS is committed to the mission of ending financial crime through the provision of anti-money laundering/counterterrorism-financing and sanctions knowledge-sharing, thought leadership, risk-mitigation services, ESG initiatives, and platforms for public-private dialogue. The association’s CAMS certification is the gold- standard qualification for AFC professionals, while the CGSS certification is its premier specialist qualification for sanctions professionals. ACAMS’ 60 Chapters globally further amplify the association’s mission through training and networking initiatives. Visit acams.org for more information.
Lashvinder Kaur ACAMS +44 7388 264478 lkaur@acams.org
