John J . Byrne : The birth of an industry
John J . Byrne , Esq ., CAMS , is executive vice president and chairman of the Advisory Board at AML RightSource . He is also an adjunct professor at George Mason University ’ s Schar School of Policy and Government .
Byrne is an internationally known regulatory and legislative attorney who has been one of the leading AML community voices for over 35 years . He has experience in a vast array of financial service-related issues , with particular expertise in regulatory oversight , policy and governance , anti-money laundering ( AML ), privacy and terrorist financing . Byrne , who had previously served as the executive vice president of ACAMS , has written hundreds of articles and blogs on AML , financial crime and privacy ; represented the financial sector in this area before the U . S . Congress , state legislatures and international bodies such as the Financial Action Task Force ( FATF ); and appeared on CNN , Good Morning America , The Today Show and many other media outlets in the U . S . and abroad .
Byrne has received numerous awards , including the Director ’ s Medal for Exceptional Service from the U . S . Department of the Treasury ’ s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ( FinCEN ), the American Bankers Association ’ s ( ABA ) Distinguished Service Award for his work in the compliance field , the Patricia Wise Award from the West Coast AML Forum ( WCAML ), as well as several awards for writing and for his podcast , “ AML Now ” ( which has become “ AML Conversations ”). Byrne was recognized with the ACAMS Lifetime Service Award in September 2017 . He also serves on Marquette University ’ s Commercial Banking Board and a number of other boards and steering committees .
In addition , Byrne is a member of the United States Running Streak Association ( USRSA ) for running three-plus miles a day for 26 years and counting .
ACAMS Today ( AT ): Could you tell us when you started in the antifinancial crime ( AFC ) industry ?
John J . Byrne ( JB ): First , we never called it the AFC industry ― that is a recent acronym . I started in the industry in 1985 . This was even before we had money laundering laws on the books in the U . S . As a young lawyer for the American Bankers Association , I was given the project of looking at “ The Cash Connection ,” a report of the President ’ Commission on Organized Crime under President Reagan . The report looked at whether we needed laws and regulations to deal with the movement of what we now call illicit funds . We started to call the field “ anti-money laundering ” in the mid- ‘ 90s , although it encompassed AML , counter-terrorist financing ( CTF ) and sanctions . The recent generation has embraced the AFC term .
I have been fortunate enough to be on the ground floor of many of the changes throughout three decades . In 1986 , the Money Laundering Control
Act was passed , and then the regulations came out in 1987 . At the ABA in 1987 , we went on road trips to approximately 20 cities to explain to bankers the new laws and regulations required . So , we would jump on a plane and go to Chicago . Then , we would jump on another plane and go to Seattle . Then we would spend the day at a hotel with 300 or 400 people in the audience , telling them what the laws and regulations require of them . So that ’ s how this all started .
AT : With over 35 years of experience in the anti-financial crime ( AFC ) industry , what do you consider as your biggest professional accomplishment ?
JB : Well , I ’ ve been fortunate to be involved in several important organizations including the ABA . We worked extremely hard with the membership to collaborate with both the regulators and law enforcement ( LE ) so that both sides of the issues related to money laundering were supported . We had our share of arguments , but we always worked closely together . That set the stage for the environment that we ’ re in now . While we in the private sector might be potentially critical about a new law or regulation , it comes from wanting to ensure that we get the right things accomplished .
Back in the ‘ 80s and ‘ 90s , you could offer possible changes to laws and regulations , and if they made sense , members of Congress on both sides of the aisle would accept them .
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