Cyprus Chapter

Gregory Dellas is the Chief Compliance and Innovation Officer at ECOMMBX, an Electronic Money Institution with a flexible FinTech platform for cross-boarder inter-bank transactions. 

Whilst at the Bank of Cyprus, Gregory led the anti-money laundering (AML) risk management team within the International Banking Services Division and acted as the local compliance officer. His team was responsible for the onboarding of high-risk clients, the evaluation of large and complex transactions, as well as the review of existing and approval of new high-risk client relationships. In addition, Dellas was responsible for providing advice, guidance and specialized training to management and staff on AML and regulatory compliance matters. 

In the past, Dellas worked with Coopers & Lybrand in Nicosia and held various senior and managerial positions in Cyprus Popular Bank and the Bank of Cyprus in wealth management, compliance and other areas. He has extensive experience as a private banker and led the setup of private banking units in the U.K. and Romania. He also served as the group money laundering compliance officer and was responsible for the AML function for Cyprus Popular Bank and all its overseas subsidiaries. 

Dellas is the founder and Chair of the ACAMS Cyprus Chapter, since 2015. He is CAMS, CGSS and CAMS (Advanced) - Audit certified, a certified CAMS trainer, a Fellow of the International Compliance Association (ICA) and a long-standing member of the Anti-Money Laundering Professionals (AMLP) Forum. He also holds an MBA from Lancaster University in the UK and a BSC (Hons) Industrial economics from the University of Warwick. 

Nassos Paltayian is in charge of the Compliance and Risk Management Team. Tasks include Internal processes and manuals maintenance according to regulations and laws, training of colleagues on AML matters, sanctions related issues and management, FATCA US and CRS related matters, review of all information for acceptance of new clients, internal Auditors liaison, ISO 27001 liaison and in charge of implementation, Representative of Abacus on ICPAC AML committee, Representative of Abacus on CFA AML committee, leader of module 7 (DNFBPs) of the National Risk Assessment representing ICPAC.

Professional career: 2005 –2008 PricewaterhouseCoopers Nicosia (Auditor in Financial Services sector), 2009 –2013 Abacus Limited (Client portfolio manager), 2014 –today Abacus Limited (Head of Compliance).

Academic and professional qualifications/memberships: The English School Nicosia leaver (2000), National Guard–Special Forces (2002), BA Accounting and Finance (2005), ICAEW member (2008), ICPAC member (2009), ACAMS member (2014), CAMS certified (2015).

Constantinos is an AML/CTF Compliance Officer at the Cyprus Gaming and Casino Supervision Commission since 2021. His duties include the supervision of the effective implementation of the provisions of the AML Law by the obliged entity, and the development of AML/CTF Directions.

Prior to working in the Commission, Constantinos gained multileveled experience and knowledge in the fields of AML, Compliance, Finance and Business while working as a Compliance Consultant at AMF Global Ltd, Associate and Group AML Officer at AXIA Ventures Group Ltd, and Project Manager at Exerte Partners Ltd.

Constantinos holds an MBA from the University of Cyprus, an MSc in Economics and Finance from the University of Kent, and a BSc in Economic and Regional Development from the Panteion University. He is also CAMS certified and a holder of CySEC’s Advanced Examination.

Constantinos is a member of the Cyprus Economic Society, an ASA Certified Sailing Instructor, and served as a President of the Rotaract Club of Nicosia and Country Representative of Rotaract Europe.

George Apostolides is the Chief Compliance Officer at Eurobank Cyprus which is a subsidiary of Eurobank Group and directly supervised by the European Central Bank.

George has extensive experience in the area of Banking for Anti Money Laundering and combating Terrorism Financing, Implementation of Financial Sanction Programs and Regulatory Compliance.

Prior to his career as a Compliance Officer, George was involved in the area of auditing holding a senior position in the Internal Audit Department of Eurobank Cyprus and as an External Auditor for a Big4 firm.

He holds the professional qualification of a Charter Accountant (ICAEW) and the Russian Sanctions Risk Management Specialist certification (K2-Integrity).

Elena Frixou is the Head of the Legal Department of the Association of Cyprus Banks. Her duties involve monitoring AML/CFT and regulatory compliance issues and act as Chair of the relevant committees of the Association. She represents the Association at the European Banking Federation (EBF), as well as the House of Representatives, the Central Bank of Cyprus and other governmental bodies.

Prior to working in the Association, Ms Frixou has been practicing corporate law in a large law firm in Nicosia. She has also delivered a number of training courses in respect of the Cyprus AML/CFT Framework.

Ms Frixou is a Barrister (member of Gray’s Inn London) and has been admitted to the Bar in Cyprus. She is a holder of a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) and a Master of Laws (LLM) in Corporate Commercial Law from King’s College London, a Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Legal Studies from City University London and a Diploma in Oil and Gas Agreements from the IBC Academy-UK.

Ms Frixou is also a Board member of the Cyprus Chapter of ACAMS.

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Antonis graduated from university of Abertay Dundee obtaining a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA). He had a 30-year extensive experience in the banking sector, working in Laiki Bank and Bank of Cyprus and serving from various important posts in Financial Control, Internal Audit and Compliance. Before leaving Bank of Cyprus, he held the position of the Assistant Manager in Financial Crime & Sanctions Compliance department, acting also as the Alternate AMLCO (2014-October 2022). Currently, he holds the position of Director of Compliance in Kiteserve Ltd, an audit firm regulated by ICPAC.

Antonis has a broad and deep experience in Anti-Financial Crime and Sanctions and sound experience in other compliance areas. Antonis is also a holder of the Certification of Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (CAMS) from the Association of the Anti-Money Laundering Specialists, the Certification of AML Officer by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission and the Certification in AML for ICPAC and CBA Members by the International Compliance Association (ICA).

Eirini is the Head of Compliance at FXGT. Previously, she was the AML & Compliance Manager of Omega Funds Investment Ltd, a regulated EU investment firm in Limassol, Cyprus. Prior that, she served as a legal officer and AMLCO of Banque SBA, Cyprus, part of Banque Libano-Francaise Financial Group.

Eirini has been involved in the AML field since 2013 and obtained considerable knowledge and experience on compliance issues and Anti Money Laundering laws and related directives and regulations. She has attended numerous seminars/workshops on the subject and has been responsible for legal and compliance matters of the above mentioned firms.

Eirini holds a law degree from University of Surrey and an LLM in Environmental Law (International Law of the Sea, Natural Resources, Sustainability and Energy) from the University of Queen Mary (UK). She is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) and a holder of CISI Certificate on Financial Services Regulatory Framework (CySEC Advanced Examination). She is also a member of the Cyprus Bar Association.

Athena Yiallourou joined Trident Trust Company (Cyprus) Limited – a CySEC regulated service provider, in 2013 after working for Bank of Cyprus for more than 30 years, where she gained experience of both international banking and risk & compliance matters. She sits on the Board of Directors of Trident Cyprus and is responsible for risk and compliance matters in the business.

Athena is a member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, holds a Master's degree in Business Administration from CIIM/University of Limassol, has a CAMS qualification and is a member of the ACAMs Cyprus Chapter. She is also a trainer for AML subjects for the Cyprus Fiduciary Association.