ACSS Training
Taskforce
Our Mission
To this end, the Training Taskforce members share and contribute subject matter expertise and best practices from their respective industry viewpoints to identify current and emerging trends in sanctions-related risks, regulatory developments, and operational challenges. The members of the Training Taskforce play a vital role in developing, enhancing, and keeping current all training content offered by the ACSS. This can include webinars, courses, the CSS exam, or any other training that the ACSS offers.
Members
Owais Arshad
Director
Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)
Owais is a Director at RBC and provides strategic advice to its Global Economic Sanctions program. Mr. Arshad’s advisory work at RBC encompasses capital markets, wealth management, investment custodian services and, block chain enabled digital assets. He has written widely on sanctions related topics, and regularly presents on geopolitics, and the evolution of global sanctions regimes.
Rebecca Andersen, CSS
Associate Member,
Six Pump Court, Barristers’ Chambers
Rebecca is a Certified Sanctions Specialist based in London. She is also an arbitrator/arbitration counsel, specialising in International commercial arbitration. She graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) from Wales and obtained a Master of Laws (LL.M.) with Merit from Queen Mary University of London and University College London. She is an associate member of one of the leading set of Barristers’ Chambers in the UK, Six Pump Court, London. At the same time, she is a law tutor/lecturer in the University of Buckingham, England. Rebecca has about 20 years’ experience as a compliance lawyer, advising on sanctions regimes of US OFAC, UK OFSI, United Nations, and the European Union, international trade, export, import and cross border transactions. She started as a litigation and corporate lawyer with the Global Ernst & Young Law. She then went on to become the General Counsel & Head of Compliance (including Sanctions) in various public listed corporations; listed in United States, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia.
Michael De Boeck
Acquislp
Michael specializes in EU trade law and dispute resolution. He has broad experience in litigation and arbitration by advising and representing clients in disputes relating to various sectors including commercial distribution, construction, banking and finance and customs-disputes in domestic courts and arbitral procedures. He recently advised clients in CEPANI and ICC arbitrations. Michael also has experience in international investment arbitration in the EMEA region on behalf of an investor. He remains academically active as a lecturer (university docent) at The Hague University of Applied Sciences where he teaches courses on EU Business Law and EU Law & Institutions. Before joining Acquis, he was a partner at a premier Belgian independent law firm, a doctor- assistant in the law faculty of the College of Europe in Bruges and a Research Fellow at the Max Plank Institute in Luxembourg. He holds a dual PhD from Ghent and Luxembourg University (2020), a Master of Laws from Ghent University (2013 – magna cum laude) and an LLM from Vanderbilt University (2014 – Dean’s List honors). Michael is a dual-qualified lawyer at the Bar of Antwerp and New York. He is fluent in Dutch, French and English.
Richard Craig, CSS
Financial Sanctions Data Manager
Bloomberg LP
Rich is a Financial Sanctions Data Manager at Bloomberg, where he is responsible for the acquisition, validation, maintenance, and quality assurance of ten jurisdictions, including US OFAC, UK OFSI, United Nations, and the European Union. Rich has led the efforts of the sanctions teams in Bloomberg’s Data department since the implementation of sectoral sanctions in 2014. He is Data Management Capability Assessment Model (DCAM) Certified V2 and a member of the Association of Certified Sanction Specialists.
Kate Koeppen
Export Controls Manager, Americas
Schaeffler
Rohan Mishra
Sanctions Data Specialist
Bloomberg
Rohan is a Sanctions Data Specialist at Bloomberg based in London. As a Specialist, Rohan identifies entities and financial instruments impacted by economic sanctions. In addition to acquiring and ensuring the quality of Bloomberg's sanction data Rohan has worked on product enhancements bringing greater transparency into the way issuers and securities are impacted by sanctions restrictions. Rohan specializes in sanctions from the US, EU, UK, Switzerland & the United Nations.
Jeff Nielsen
Ramboll
Jeff Nielsen is a sanctions and export controls lawyer with over 20 years’ experience representing clients in diverse industries, both at law firms and in-house. His expertise is in both United States and European Union sanctions and export controls laws.
Burak Soyogul
Acquislp
With over two decades of professional experience, Burak has worked for leading institutions such as Euroclear, BNP Paribas, KBC Bank, ING Belgium, Degroof Petercam, and Canada Trust Toronto Dominion holding roles ranging from Business Analyst, Branch Supervisor to 1st LoD Business Consultant. Fluent in English, French, Dutch, and Turkish, Burak brings a diverse and international perspective to every project, coupled with a deep understanding of both European and global regulatory frameworks. Currently serving as a Compliance Officer at Acquis European Law & Policy, Burak leads the second line of defense for the firm’s compliance program. This role involves the setup and monitoring of comprehensive KYC (Know Your Customer) and CDD (Customer Due Diligence) processes, sanctions monitoring with a focus on both EU and OFAC regulations, and providing critical advisory services on payments, correspondent banking, ICSD-related cases, and custodial relationships. Burak is also responsible for training partners and team members on Regulations, Compliance, Sanctions and AML (Anti-Money Laundering) practices, ensuring that the firm stays ahead of regulatory requirements in those areas. He holds a master's degree in political sciences from the University of Amsterdam, specializing in International Relations and Public International Law. This academic foundation has provided him with a keen understanding of geopolitical dynamics and the complex international regulatory environment that governs global finance. In addition, he played a pivotal role in organizing a prestigious academic workshop on Identity Politics in Central Asia and the Muslim world, contributing to a published volume on the topic. Burak has also served as a trainer at the Febelfin Academy, conducting courses on securities and corporate actions. This highlights Burak ‘s passion for knowledge sharing and the development of future industry professionals.
Roberto Soprano
Global Director Trade Compliance
Firmenich
Roberto Soprano is the Global Director for Trade Compliance at Firmenich. He specialized in sanctions, non-proliferation and WTO law and policies and has practiced in multinational companies, law firms and a Big4 consultancy firm. He has acted as consultant to International Organizations and European institutions on trade matters including the World Bank and the European Parliament. A lawyer by training, he graduated in law from the University of Milan and holds a master in WTO law and policy from the World Trade Institute in Switzerland. He is a Professor Associado at the Law School of the University Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona and a has been a Guest Professor of International Economic Law at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel.
Jeff Teahan
BigTXN
Jeff Teahan is a Product Specialist at Big TXN, a regtech company based in London. With a background in Law and Politics, he specialises in UK, EU and Swiss sanctions and has an interest in global supply chain networks. Jeff has led projects developing sanctions software and import/export restriction databases.
Roberto Sorzana, CSS
TASKFORCE
Roberto is the founder of Regional Compliance Group, a boutique consulting firm specialized in International Sanctions and Anti-corruption (www.rcompliancegroup.com). He is a lawyer graduated from the University of Buenos Aires; LL.M. from Austral University; with more than 12 years in Compliance-related functions in the oil and gas industry in one of LATAM’s main exporters. Roberto holds the following certifications in the international sanctions and compliance field: Certified Sanctions Specialist (CSS), Certified Compliance and Ethics Professional -International (CCEP-I), and Leadership Professional In Ethics and Compliance (LPECC). He is an active member of the Ethics and Compliance Commission -Argentina Chapter- of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and has served in the Compliance Commission of the Argentine Institute of Oil and Gas. Roberto regularly participates in compliance lectures and seminars within the energy industry and has authored several scholarly articles on international sanctions and anti-corruption related matters.