Leslie Devereaux Kuester is an associate managing director in the Financial Crimes Compliance practice at K2 Integrity, with 18 years of experience helping corporations and financial institutions design, implement, and manage sanctions compliance programs across high-risk jurisdictions. Leslie works with clients to assess their financial crime compliance programs and advise on compliance program design.
Having spent almost a decade in-house on the compliance and risk management teams of multinational corporations and financial services companies, Leslie’s expertise includes conducting sanctions risk assessments and strategic design of sanctions compliance programs. She assists clients with navigating the complex financial crimes compliance landscape.
Prior to joining K2 Integrity, Leslie worked in-house as the global head of sanctions at a fintech specializing in cross-border payments as well as at a multinational financial services company. In those roles she directed all aspects of the sanctions programs to ensure compliance with regulations administered the U.S., UN, UK, and EU. Leslie advised on new products and corridors, tracked regulatory developments, enhanced sanctions filtering capability and testing, conducted internal investigations, delivered training, and reported to management, among other duties. She coordinated with Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering program elements, oversaw the submission of Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) license applications, and advocated with key U.S. government agencies regarding sanctions policy. Leslie also worked at a global aerospace corporation, where she managed the team responsible for sanctions compliance and coordinated reviews of high-risk customers and activities to ensure compliance with sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury and State Department and export controls administered by the Commerce Department.
Leslie began her career in sanctions compliance with the U.S. Department of the Treasury, first as a compliance officer at OFAC and then as a section chief for OFAC’s Sanctions Compliance and Evaluation Division.
Leslie has an M.A. in U.S. foreign policy from American University and a B.A. in political science from the University of Notre Dame. She was previously named as 2023 Readers Choice Awards winner in thought leadership for International Law by JD Supra.
