Agenda
Day 1
December 3, 2025
Networking Breakfast and Registration
Opening Remarks from the Co-Chairs
Navigating the Shifting Sands of Trade and Sanctions: The Hidden, Real-World Lessons of Converging Export Controls, Tariffs and Sanctions Enforcement
Delve into the shifts in OFAC and DOJ enforcement priorities under the Trump 2.0 administration as we examine how policy changes and personnel appointments are reshaping the sanctions landscape.
- Exploring current enforcement trends and insights into what businesses and financial institutions should anticipate
- Analyzing changes in OFAC and DOJ enforcement strategies based on past administration policies and current political climate
- Examining the impact of personnel changes within these agencies on enforcement priorities and focus areas
- Practical guidance for adapting compliance programs to anticipate and mitigate potential enforcement risks
CHINA & THE NEXT PHASE OF COMPLIANCE
Repositioning Your Program to Prepare for the Uncertain Year Ahead: Charting Your Compliance Next Steps Amid the Continuing U.S. Pivot on Sanctions and Trade
*includes anonymous audience polling
As geopolitical tensions rise, China has become a focal point for evolving U.S. economic pressure tools — from tariffs to export controls to outbound investment restrictions. This session explores how sanctions are being recalibrated to address national security risks tied to China’s trade practices, tech development, and global reach.
- How the U.S. is shifting from traditional trade measures to targeted export controls on semiconductors, AI, and surveillance tech
- Exploring restrictions on AI and semiconductor technologies to curb China’s military-industrial development — and how industry is responding to compliance and supply chain risks
- Understanding the growing divergence in China-related sanctions and trade policy between the U.S., EU, and UK — and what that means for multinational financial institutions and exporters
- Analyzing the strategic pivot from tariffs to sanctions as a more targeted tool of economic statecraft, including how they may be deployed to address China’s role in supporting adversarial regimes like Iran
Extended Networking Break
KEYNOTE
THE NEW LANDSCAPE OF EVASION SCHEMES
Dissecting the Similarities and Differences in Sanctions and Tariff Evasion Schemes: Unpacking New, Sophisticated Techniques and How to Detect them Before It’s Too Late
- Exploring emerging evasion tactics and how they differ in the tariff vs. sanctions context
- New techniques for uncovering schemes and lessons for companies and exporters
- A look at the growing role of coordination across agencies in the U.S. and abroad
Networking Luncheon
From 5 to 10 Years: Practical Strategies for Meeting New OFAC Recordkeeping and Retention Requirements
The shift from a 5-year to a 10-year retention period for sanctions-related information has forced banks and financial institutions to re-evaluate their recordkeeping systems and compliance frameworks.
- Navigating data privacy concerns, particularly in jurisdictions with strict data privacy regulations like GDPR, complicating global compliance efforts
- Exploring the challenges of complex record retrieval
- Best practices for updating internal compliance systems to stay in line with the 10-year retention mandate
- Effectively managing the 10-year retention period through advanced technology solutions, including data storage, retrieval systems, and automated compliance tools
- Ensuring that records are properly maintained, secure, and easily accessible for audits or investigations
KEYNOTE
Networking Break
AI & SANCTIONS
Reality vs. Hype: Pros and Cons of Integrating AI into Sanctions Compliance Processes
As regulatory scrutiny intensifies and sanctions regimes become more complex, AI has emerged as both a solution and a challenge. During this panel, we will explore how AI and machine learning are being integrated into sanctions compliance programs—from transaction monitoring and name screening to customer risk scoring.
- How AI is transforming sanctions screening and transaction monitoring
- Navigating risks of algorithmic bias and black-box decision-making
- Best practices for vendor due diligence and AI governance
- Use cases that are already showing results vs. hype
SMALL-GROUP BREAKOUT ROUNDTABLES
Day 1 Concludes
Day 2
December 4, 2025
Networking Breakfast and Registration
Day 2 Remarks from the Co-Chairs
Industry is operating in a holding pattern—managing day-to-day compliance amid a sanctions regime that could tighten or unravel with little notice. This panel will explore how to assess exposure, address regulatory misalignment, and plan for the unexpected.
- Managing regulatory divergence between U.S., EU, and UK sanctions regimes, especially during wind-downs or divestments that trigger competing legal obligations
- Unwinding or doubling down? Understanding the enforcement paradox: active DOJ and OFAC cases that continue despite speculation about a potential political deal or sanctions rollback
- How to assess reputational, legal, and counterparty risk
- How companies can scenario-plan for abrupt policy changes—including new designations, license revocations, or geopolitical shifts that reopen old enforcement risks
- Keeping your program agile and ready for what’s next
HYPOTHETICAL SCENARIOS
Overcoming the Latest Pain Points in Working through Conflicting Sanctions Programs
As global sanctions programs become more complex, the gaps between U.S., UK, and EU approaches are widening—leaving multinational compliance teams caught in a tangle of conflicting obligations. This session will explore how leading institutions are navigating today’s most pressing cross-border friction points and what’s coming next.
- Navigating misalignment in Russia and China-related designations and real-world strategies for balancing conflicting regulatory obligations
- The impact of blocking statutes, licensing differences, and enforcement asymmetry — how to manage diverging guidance from OFAC, OFSI, and the European Commission
- Responding to regulatory inquiries across jurisdictions, and best practices for documentation, escalation, and legal positioning
- How to build resilient compliance frameworks for multijurisdictional exposure in an era of growing geopolitical fragmentation
Networking Break
KEYNOTE: U.S. Department of State
Networking Luncheon
KEYNOTE: BIS
IRAN
Unpacking the Maximum Pressure Campaign: Where Things Stand on Iran Sanctions and the Next Phase of Supply Chain Risk & Global Compliance
With the return of the “maximum pressure” strategy, the U.S. is once again ramping up sanctions enforcement against Iran—leveraging both new designations and aggressive scrutiny of third-country actors, especially Chinese entities. Financial institutions and global supply chains are now facing intensified compliance expectations and geopolitical risks.
- How the administration is using EO 13902 and other tools to target Iranian oil flows, including through China and Latin America
- How U.S. sanctions on Iran are being used as leverage in broader foreign policy negotiations—including what this means for enforcement timelines, license backlogs, and pressure points on allied countries like China
- How companies are leveraging general licenses and managing frozen assets with institutions like Euroclear and Clearstream
- The ripple effect across multilateral frameworks, and how renewed U.S. pressure on Iran is affecting EU/UK relations, secondary sanctions exposure, and general license strategies
- Concrete examples of compliance upgrades in response to the Maximum Pressure Campaign-and lessons learned from the first Trump Administration
Networking Break
LATIN AMERICA
The DOJ Focus on Cartels and TCOs: Updating Risk Assessments, Enhanced Due Diligence and Monitoring for Third Parties
With sanctions enforcement strategies evolving under a shifting U.S. administration, the DOJ is signaling a renewed and sharpened focus on transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and drug cartels—especially across Latin America and Mexico. Financial institutions, payment processors, logistics networks, and compliance officers are being pulled into the front lines of this priority, facing increasing scrutiny for their exposure to cartel-linked activity, including illicit finance, trade-based money laundering, and maritime sanctions evasion.
This panel will examine how enforcement priorities are changing, what compliance teams should be doing now, and where risk exposure is growing fastest.
- How DOJ’s reallocation of enforcement resources from anti-corruption to TCO-related sanctions is reshaping priorities—especially in transportation, financial flows, and cargo trade
- Why U.S. enforcement agencies are increasingly targeting Mexican and Latin American banks for suspected facilitation of cartel-linked transactions, and how U.S. and Mexican authorities are coordinating behind the scenes
- Exploring practical red flags and real-world typologies, including falsified documents, vessel AIS spoofing, and supply chain due diligence in regions with FTO presence
- What U.S. regulators expect from FIs, trade finance institutions, and logistics players in screening for export control and sanctions compliance, including guidance on voluntary self-disclosures
The Rise of Outbound Investment Rules and the Intersection with Sanctions and Export Controls: New Legal and Compliance Considerations Affecting Transactions
With the U.S. government intensifying its focus on outbound investment, compliance and legal teams are racing to understand a still-evolving regulatory landscape. From executive orders targeting high-tech sectors to the growing integration of sanctions, export controls, and investment reviews, the pressure is on to align cross-border activity with national security priorities. This panel will unpack what we know so far, where the rules may be headed, and how sanctions teams are increasingly pulled into the outbound investment conversation.
- Exploring the latest executive orders and agency guidance shaping outbound investment rules—what’s currently covered, and what may be added
- How outbound investment rules are overlapping with existing sanctions and export control frameworks—especially in sensitive sectors like AI, semiconductors, and dual-use technologies
- How legal, sanctions, and compliance teams are adapting to new responsibilities for assessing outbound investments—and what best practices are emerging
- How the U.S. outbound investment regime is influencing multilateral discussions, industry advocacy efforts, and parallel regulatory developments in allied jurisdictions