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In this episode, host Marika Torsdotter reconnects with Hera U. Smith, a financial crime and third-party risk specialist at Moody's, with over a decade of experience spanning sanctions, export controls, and AML — across both the United States and Europe.
Hera's path into the field is one few would have predicted: she started in litigation law at a firm in Los Angeles, passed the bar, and stumbled into banking compliance just as Russia's invasion of Crimea was triggering a wave of new sanctions that needed someone to interpret, apply, and operationalize them fast. That turning point shaped everything.
The conversation covers a lot of ground — from a fascinating Federal Reserve study showing AI-powered LLMs can cut false positives in sanctions screening by over 90%, to the surprisingly old-school ways sanctions evaders are still getting away with it (think: painting over ship IMO numbers). Hera also shares an unexpected transferable skill she never saw coming: tutoring kids.
And in a candid moment, Hera speaks to something the series is all about — the gender shift that happens as women climb the compliance ladder. Equal or majority at entry level, but increasingly outnumbered at the top. It's a dynamic she's seen firsthand, and it's exactly why conversations like this one matter.
Topics covered:
- What the compliance industry gets wrong — and why reaching out to tech companies is the fix
- How AI and LLMs are transforming sanctions screening (with real data from a Federal Reserve study)
- Why compliance professionals should stop being afraid to experiment with technology
- Hera's unexpected career path: from LA litigation law to sanctions specialist in Europe
- The transferable skill nobody talks about: teaching kids how to simplify complex material
- Mentorship and why loyalty shouldn't hold you back from growing
- Sanctions evasion tactics: the old-school methods still in use today
- The gender gap in senior compliance roles — and why it needs to change
