Sanctions Conference 2025

Registration opens with breakfast

UK Finance welcome and Chair’s opening remarks

Trends and new horizons in international sanctions

Shared foreign policy goals and values can deliver collaborative and mutually beneficial sanctions efforts. For the UK and the EU, developments like the war in Ukraine influence designations and have presented opportunities to overcome long-standing challenges around alignment, interoperability, and cross-jurisdictional compliance. To explore this our expert panel of senior policymakers provide insights into the future of sanctions in Europe and the role financial industries will play in supporting foreign policy goals. 

Shape-shifting targets in circumvention and evasion: the impact of trade sanctions

Three years from Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, circumvention and evasion tactics by entities supporting the Russian economy and military industrial complex continue to challenge compliance teams. New approaches from government, such as the formation of OTSI, and the introduction of new trade sanctions have expanded the compliance obligations to these sectors. This panel will discuss:

• The latest industry trends in designing screening frameworks which optimally balance risk management with commercial objectives.
• How financial institutions can stay ahead of the evaders, and how other sectors can support the fight against circumvention.
• How guidance can best support responses from industry to uphold the policy intent of sanctions. 

Coffee break

Breaking down silos: aligning AML and sanctions practices

In today’s sanctions environment, sanctions professionals are navigating an increasingly complex and dynamic risk landscape. According to some regulators and professionals, integrating best practices from the AML space and implementing effective AML controls can mitigate risks, solve information gaps, and support more holistic assessments. But to what extent should sanctions and AML approaches mix? This panel will explore how the convergence of sanctions and AML is reshaping the role of sanctions professionals, and discuss:

• Lessons from AML that sanctions professionals can implement to promote nimbler responses to asset freezes
• How new intelligence sharing powers can reduce sanctions risk to firms and the wider ecosystem
• How technology can be leveraged to enable effective information flow and breaking down internal silos.

Panel discussion: Agility and flexibility: lessons for the future of sanctions

Largely dependent on the global geopolitical climate, firms continue to comply and navigate international sanctions requirements. The ever-changing geopolitical context, however, requires firms to stay aware, to keep up with the broad complexity of potential sanctions scenarios, differences in approach and pace, and new risks. At the same time, novel regimes are pushing the horizons of sanctions instruments and raise new questions around the role of financial institutions in their implementation. This panel will explore what firms can do to prepare for and comply with new regimes, while anticipating future sanctions scenarios. Join our final panel to hear from leading sanctions voices’ insights into:

• Horizon scanning and allocating resource ahead of time to support the resilience of your compliance framework
• Wargaming and scenario planning, and crisis communications
• Maintaining strong relationships with regulators in multiple jurisdictions, shaping your firm’s sanctions policies to fit the mould of your footprint, size, and risk appetite.  

Chair's closing remarks

Networking lunch