What roles are covered in the Broadgate compliance and financial crime salary guide?

The guide covers mid-senior to C-suite roles across compliance, financial crime, AML, MLRO, sanctions, regulatory compliance, controls and oversight in the UK financial services sector.

Which UK locations are included in the salary guide?

The guide includes salary benchmarks for London, Edinburgh, Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham and Bristol.

Does the guide include interim or contract rates?

Interim and contract day rates are not included in this edition and are available in a separate Broadgate publication.

Broadgate

compliance & Financial crime

Q: Are the salary figures base salary or total compensation?

Salary ranges reflect base compensation. Bonus and total package figures are indicative and typically include base salary plus bonus only.

UK Salary Guide

Compliance · Financial Crime

About This Guide

This guide provides salary benchmarks from mid-senior through to C-Suite level across the UK financial services sector, covering Compliance and Financial Crime. Data reflects current market intelligence gathered by Broadgate's specialist consultants through live hiring mandates, candidate representation and market mapping activity across the UK in 2024–2025.

Salary ranges reflect base compensation. Bonus figures represent typical market ranges and are indicative; actual structures vary by firm, seniority, and performance year. Total package figures include base and bonus only — pension, LTIP, carried interest, and equity are excluded unless stated.

Note: Roles range from mid-senior Manager, Senior Analyst and AVP level through to C-Suite. NED compensation is excluded from this edition. All figures are in GBP (£) and represent permanent hire benchmarks unless otherwise indicated. Interim and contract day rates are available in a separate Broadgate publication.

Compliance — London

Role / Title	Base Salary	Bonus (Typical)	Total Package
Chief Compliance Officer (Tier 1 Bank / Global)	£300,000–£420,000	£80,000–£150,000	£380,000–£570,000
Chief Compliance Officer (Mid-tier Bank)	£200,000–£280,000	£50,000–£90,000	£250,000–£370,000
Chief Compliance Officer (Fintech / EMI / Challenger)	£170,000–£240,000	£30,000–£70,000	£200,000–£310,000
Deputy / Group CCO	£180,000–£260,000	£45,000–£80,000	£225,000–£340,000
Head of Compliance (Business Line)	£140,000–£200,000	£35,000–£60,000	£175,000–£260,000
Head of Regulatory Affairs / Policy	£130,000–£190,000	£30,000–£55,000	£160,000–£245,000
Head of Compliance Advisory (Capital Markets)	£150,000–£220,000	£40,000–£80,000	£190,000–£300,000
Head of Controls & Second Line Oversight	£130,000–£180,000	£30,000–£55,000	£160,000–£235,000
SMF16/17 Compliance Oversight (SMCR)	£150,000–£250,000	£40,000–£80,000	£190,000–£330,000
Compliance Director / Senior Manager	£100,000–£150,000	£20,000–£45,000	£120,000–£195,000
VP Compliance / Compliance Manager (Senior)	£85,000–£120,000	£15,000–£35,000	£100,000–£155,000
Senior Compliance Analyst / AVP	£65,000–£90,000	£10,000–£25,000	£75,000–£115,000

Financial Crime — London

Role / Title	Base Salary	Bonus (Typical)	Total Package
Chief AML Officer / MLRO (Tier 1 Bank)	£250,000–£360,000	£60,000–£120,000	£310,000–£480,000
MLRO (Mid-tier Bank / Payment Institution)	£160,000–£230,000	£35,000–£70,000	£195,000–£300,000
MLRO (Fintech / E-money / Crypto)	£130,000–£190,000	£25,000–£55,000	£155,000–£245,000
Deputy MLRO / Head of AML	£130,000–£185,000	£30,000–£55,000	£160,000–£240,000
Head of Financial Crime (Group)	£160,000–£240,000	£40,000–£80,000	£200,000–£320,000
Head of Sanctions (Global / EU)	£150,000–£220,000	£40,000–£75,000	£190,000–£295,000
Head of Fraud & Financial Crime Prevention	£140,000–£200,000	£35,000–£65,000	£175,000–£265,000
Head of Financial Crime Analytics / Intelligence	£130,000–£185,000	£30,000–£55,000	£160,000–£240,000
Financial Crime Director / Senior Manager	£100,000–£150,000	£20,000–£45,000	£120,000–£195,000
Sanctions Manager / VP Sanctions	£85,000–£125,000	£15,000–£35,000	£100,000–£160,000
Senior AML / Financial Crime Analyst (AVP)	£65,000–£90,000	£10,000–£25,000	£75,000–£115,000

Compliance & Financial Crime — Edinburgh

Role	Base Salary Range	Total Comp	Market Notes
CCO / Head of Compliance (Bank / Asset Manager)	£130,000–£210,000	£155,000–£265,000	RBS/NatWest, Standard Life, Baillie Gifford demand
MLRO (Bank / Asset Manager)	£120,000–£185,000	£145,000–£235,000	Asset management MLRO market tightening
Head of Financial Crime	£110,000–£165,000	£130,000–£210,000	Growing in payments & fintech
Head of Sanctions / Regulatory Compliance	£95,000–£150,000	£115,000–£190,000	Energy & commodity trading demand noted
Senior Compliance Manager / VP	£65,000–£95,000	£6,000–£18,000	Broad demand across banking & asset management
Compliance Manager / Senior Analyst	£48,000–£70,000	£4,000–£10,000	Steady pipeline; fintech driving volume

Compliance & Financial Crime — Manchester

Role	Base Salary Range	Total Comp (Est.)	Market Notes
CCO / Head of Compliance (Retail Bank / Fintech)	£120,000–£190,000	£140,000–£240,000	FCA-regulated technology firms growing alongside established banks
MLRO (Retail Bank / Payment Firm)	£110,000–£170,000	£130,000–£215,000	Growing EMI and payment firm presence across the region
Head of Financial Crime	£100,000–£155,000	£120,000–£195,000	Strong retail banking and consumer finance demand
Senior Compliance Manager / VP	£62,000–£90,000	£5,000–£16,000	Broad demand across consumer credit and retail finance firms
Compliance Manager (Mid-Senior)	£46,000–£68,000	£3,000–£10,000	High-volume hiring activity across regulated firms
Senior Financial Crime / AML Manager	£52,000–£78,000	£4,000–£13,000	Strong demand across retail banks, payment firms and fintechs

Compliance & Financial Crime — Leeds

Role	Base Salary Range	Total Comp (Est.)	Market Notes
CCO / Head of Compliance (Bank / Consumer Lender)	£110,000–£175,000	£130,000–£220,000	HSBC, Lloyds and Halifax major employers
MLRO (Bank / Retail Finance)	£100,000–£160,000	£120,000–£200,000	Retail banking MLRO demand remains robust
Head of Financial Crime / Head of AML	£90,000–£145,000	£108,000–£183,000	Growing demand across challenger banks
Senior Compliance Manager / VP	£58,000–£85,000	£4,000–£14,000	Consumer credit and mortgages expertise in demand
Compliance Manager (Mid-Senior)	£44,000–£65,000	£3,000–£9,000	Halifax and Lloyds remain key employers
Senior Financial Crime Analyst / Manager	£48,000–£72,000	£3,000–£11,000	Steady hiring across retail banking

Compliance & Financial Crime — Birmingham

Role	Base Salary Range	Total Comp (Est.)	Market Notes
CCO / Head of Compliance	£110,000–£175,000	£130,000–£220,000	HSBC HQ presence and a growing Midlands fintech corridor
MLRO	£100,000–£160,000	£120,000–£200,000	Retail and commercial banking focused demand
Head of Financial Crime	£88,000–£138,000	£105,000–£173,000	Growing alongside FCA-regulated challenger banks
Senior Compliance Manager / VP	£58,000–£85,000	£4,000–£14,000	Strong demand across consumer and commercial finance
Compliance Manager (Mid-Senior)	£42,000–£64,000	£3,000–£9,000	Broad HSBC and fintech hiring demand
Senior Financial Crime / AML Manager	£48,000–£72,000	£3,000–£11,000	Growing demand driven by challenger bank expansion

Compliance & Financial Crime — Bristol

Role	Base Salary Range	Total Comp (Est.)	Market Notes
CCO / Head of Compliance (Fintech / Payments)	£115,000–£180,000	£138,000–£225,000	Thriving fintech scene; growing FCA-regulated population
MLRO (Payment Firm / Fintech)	£105,000–£165,000	£126,000–£210,000	Payments and fintech focused
Head of Financial Crime	£88,000–£142,000	£105,000–£178,000	Payments and fintech dominant
Senior Compliance Manager / VP	£60,000–£88,000	£5,000–£15,000	FCA-regulated fintechs main driver
Compliance Manager (Mid-Senior)	£44,000–£66,000	£3,000–£10,000	Growing regulated firm base
Senior Financial Crime / AML Manager	£50,000–£75,000	£4,000–£12,000	Payment firms most active

Sector-by-Sector Benchmarks

Compensation structures vary significantly by sector. Investment banking and hedge funds continue to set the market ceiling through discretionary bonus pools, while fintechs compete through equity participation and growth optionality.

Tier 1 / Global Investment Banks — London

Role / Title	Base Salary	Bonus (Typical)	Total Package
Chief Compliance Officer	£300,000–£430,000	£100,000–£180,000	£400,000–£610,000
Chief AML Officer / MLRO	£270,000–£380,000	£80,000–£150,000	£350,000–£530,000
Head of Compliance (Division)	£160,000–£240,000	£50,000–£100,000	£210,000–£340,000
Head of Sanctions	£170,000–£250,000	£55,000–£110,000	£225,000–£360,000

Retail & High Street Banks

Role / Title	Base Salary	Bonus (Typical)	Total Package
Chief Compliance Officer	£200,000–£300,000	£50,000–£100,000	£250,000–£400,000
MLRO	£160,000–£240,000	£40,000–£80,000	£200,000–£320,000
Head of Financial Crime	£150,000–£220,000	£35,000–£70,000	£185,000–£290,000
Head of Consumer Compliance / TCF	£120,000–£180,000	£25,000–£55,000	£145,000–£235,000
Senior Compliance Manager	£70,000–£105,000	£8,000–£25,000	£78,000–£130,000

Asset & Wealth Management

Role / Title	Base Salary	Bonus (Typical)	Total Package
CCO (FCA Authorised Manager)	£180,000–£290,000	£50,000–£110,000	£230,000–£400,000
MLRO	£160,000–£250,000	£40,000–£90,000	£200,000–£340,000
Head of Compliance (FCA COBS)	£150,000–£230,000	£40,000–£80,000	£190,000–£310,000
Head of Financial Crime / Sanctions	£140,000–£210,000	£35,000–£70,000	£175,000–£280,000
Senior Compliance Manager (VP)	£85,000–£130,000	£20,000–£50,000	£105,000–£180,000

Fintech, Challenger Banks & Payments

Role / Title	Base Salary	Bonus (Typical)	Total Package
CCO / Head of Compliance (EMI / FCA Auth)	£160,000–£260,000	£30,000–£75,000	£190,000–£335,000
MLRO (Regulated Payment Institution)	£140,000–£220,000	£25,000–£65,000	£165,000–£285,000
Head of Financial Crime (Fintech)	£130,000–£200,000	£25,000–£60,000	£155,000–£260,000
Head of Fraud Risk & Financial Crime Prevention	£120,000–£190,000	£25,000–£55,000	£145,000–£245,000
Head of Compliance (Crypto / Digital Assets)	£130,000–£210,000	£20,000–£60,000	£150,000–£270,000
Senior Compliance Manager	£75,000–£115,000	£10,000–£30,000	£85,000–£145,000

Private Equity, Private Credit & Alternatives

Role / Title	Base Salary	Bonus (Typical)	Total Package
CCO (FCA Authorised Alternatives Manager)	£180,000–£280,000	£60,000–£120,000	£240,000–£400,000
MLRO (PE / Credit Fund)	£150,000–£240,000	£45,000–£90,000	£195,000–£330,000
Head of Compliance / Regulatory (FCA, AIFMD)	£160,000–£250,000	£50,000–£100,000	£210,000–£350,000
Head of Financial Crime (FC + KYC)	£140,000–£220,000	£40,000–£80,000	£180,000–£300,000
Senior Compliance Manager (VP)	£90,000–£140,000	£25,000–£60,000	£115,000–£200,000

Source: Broadgate UK Financial Services Salary Guide, June 2026. Salary ranges reflect base compensation unless otherwise stated; bonus and total package figures are indicative and exclude pension, LTIP, carried interest and equity unless stated in the source guide. For alternatives managers, carried interest is excluded and can represent a multiple of base salary over a typical fund cycle.