Anti-money laundering firm, SmartSearch, has announced the appointment of Guy Harrison as its new CEO.

Harrison joins from Dow Jones Risk & Compliance, a provider of regulatory compliance and risk management solutions, where he worked as general manager. Prior to that, Harrison has held roles at IHS Markit, Goldman Sachs and Deloitte.

SmartSearch achieved record results in 2021 with a 22% increase in business, driven by demand for its online ID verification and due diligence platform.

Harrison commented: “SmartSearch has already delivered impressive growth, and I’m very much looking forward to working with the team to lead the business towards even greater success.

“Fraud and money laundering attempts have risen considerably since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic increasing the need for regulated businesses to have effective AML technology. SmartSearch’s state-of-the-art technology is perfectly positioned to meet this need by accurately identifying and verifying customers in just two seconds.”

Harrison takes over with immediate effect from SmartSearch’s CEO and founder, John Dobson, who launched the business in 2011. Dobson will remain an active part of the company as a non-executive director.

Dobson said: “I feel a lot of pride in having led a worthy and successful business which will continue to grow and prosper with a very competent, energetic and innovative team remaining.

“I felt the time had come for my second retirement and I am very happy to handover the leadership to Guy, who I know has the experience and strategic vision to steer the business through the next expansion phase as it continues to become recognised as the default solution for AML verification, both in the UK and globally.”

Share Story: