History

The Luxembourg Association of Compliance Officers (“ALCO”) was created in 2000. These years have been rich in events and allowed ALCO to become one of the recognised players in the Luxembourg financial industry.

In the beginning, some Compliance Officers from the financial sector met up and began by making note of their differences. This is because Compliance Officers came from various backgrounds such as former lawyers, finance professionals, or even internal auditors.

Connected to more "senior" structures such as the legal department or internal audit, or - conversely – independent structures reporting directly to the top of the organisation, the Compliance function has not always been able to find its place within the organisation. Above all, the Compliance function’s objectives were sometimes vague and could not always be distinguished from those of internal audit.

This raised the necessity of defining more clearly the role and status of the Compliance Officer. As a result, ALCO was created in December 2000 with about thirty members. From the beginning, ALCO benefited from encouragement and support from the regulatory authorities of the financial sector, as well as from other professional associations.

ALCO has developed very fast – today it has more than 400 members representing more than 150 institutions.

Its standing is recognised: ALCO is frequently consulted by the Authorities in diverse instances and is also invited to participate in various works, most notably those concerning the fight against money laundering.

Since October 2004, and just like the internal audit function, the Compliance function has been officially recognised by the financial sector.

Having reached its first stage of maturity, ALCO opened up to the insurance sector in 2002. Indeed, the ethical obligations of the financial sector do not differ, in their principles, from those of the insurance sector.

Today, ALCO contributes by its action to enrich and reinforce the image and reputation of the Luxembourg market.