MEET THE FOLKS: Nicola Holmes, Head of Compliance
We’re a friendly bunch at FOLK2FOLK and we love seeing the positive and life changing impact finance can have. We get to know our customers so we thought you might like to know a bit about us too.
Over to you Nicola…
I grew up in Hertfordshire and used to spend hours in the garden making mud pies and helping my dad when I was very young! I studied Maths at University because my headmistress told me I was good at Maths but eventually came to realise I was much more interested in dealing with people rather than numbers.
Most of my early career was in relationship management and business development, initially for United Airlines and then moving to American Express and several other large financial services firms over the years before setting up my own consultancy firm.
Running my own consultancy was an exciting time. We focussed on Business development and regulatory compliance specifically for Payment Services firms and e-money issuers. As a member of the Association of Professional Compliance Consultants, I attended several Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Working Groups. Stand out memories include working under privilege with a city law firm to defend a client in an FCA enforcement investigation, as well as working with the Metropolitan Police to assist in the return of monies to customers from a client whose client money account had been frozen by the authorities, owing to my client being caught up as a victim of a sophisticated fraud investment scam.
Then, I relocated to Devon – like many others I wanted to escape the stress, hustle and bustle of urban life. I have two daughters and a son, who have all flown the nest now although they all come back to visit when they can. With two cats, three alpacas and soon to be six chickens, I have endless amusement at home as well as many happy weekends gardening, growing veg and embarking upon beautiful long walks on Dartmoor.
I joined FOLK2FOLK in 2019 and am approved by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as the Senior Manager with responsibility for Compliance Oversight and the Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO). My first task was to implement the new FCA Peer 2 Peer (P2P) rules and the Senior Management & Certification regime which came into effect in December 2019.
What’s great about FOLK2FOLK is that, as a small firm, everyone has opportunity to stand out, get involved and contribute to the success of the business. The company is grounded in common sense with sensible business goals and a human, authentic leadership team.
I love the fact that FOLK2FOLK is all about real people dealing with real people. It’s a breath of fresh air, far removed from the impersonal world and frustrating bureaucracy of many large corporates that have needless policies, endless paperwork, and a lack of decision-making authority.
FOLK2FOLK is a growing business with high aspirations, and as Head of Compliance I want to support the development of the business first and foremost but also ensure that we follow the regulatory requirements of an FCA authorised firm.
#LoveWhereYouWork #MeetTheFOLKS #HelpfulFOLK
