We’re pleased to welcome four new joiners to Avyse Partners: Klara Barnes, Andrés Galiñanes, Johnny Attwater and Aimee Tickner. Their appointments mark another step in our growth, adding depth to our advisory work and strengthening the team that supports our clients. You can read more about each of them below.
Klara Barnes joins the Financial Crime team as Consultant
Klara brings over seven years of financial crime experience, involving work with a range of regulated firms such as payment service providers and EMIs. On top of this, Klara has spent over a year on secondment at the FCA within their Digital Assets Authorisations Team, where she reviewed registration applications and assessed firms' financial crime frameworks and regulatory readiness. That experience at the FCA helps to keep her reviews purposeful and proportionate to the firm - getting to the issues that actually matter and landing on recommendations firms can act on, rather than a lengthy list of theoretical findings.
On her appointment, Klara said: “I'm really excited to be joining Avyse and to be part of such an experienced and growing team. Having worked with some of the team before, I already knew the calibre of people at Avyse, which made the opportunity to join even more exciting.
What really stood out to me was the culture and the genuinely personal approach to clients. I love being somewhere you can really understand what a client needs, get stuck into the work and contribute across different areas.
I'm looking forward to bringing my experience from Skilled Person and independent reviews, as well as the regulatory perspective I gained during my time at the FCA. I'm also excited to see how Avyse continues to evolve what we can offer clients, particularly as AI changes the way we work and the financial crime landscape."
Andrés Galiñanes joins the Financial Crime team as Principal
Andrés brings 15 years’ experience across financial crime consulting and forensic investigations, gained at international advisory firms.
As a financial crime consultant, Andrés has led teams on Skilled Person reviews for a range of financial services firms, helping them identify the root causes of issues and apply proportionate, tailored solutions that meet regulators’ expectations. He has helped clients review and build their financial crime frameworks and has used data analytics and technology solutions to uncover control weaknesses. He was also a key member of the team on a US Department of Justice-appointed monitorship of a global bank, working across EMEA, APAC and the Americas.
Andrés began his career in forensic investigations. As a forensic accountant he has conducted multiple investigations into fraud, bribery and corruption, and sanctions breaches, and that grounding in evidence still shapes how he approaches regulatory reviews. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA) and holds the ICA International Diploma in Financial Crime with Distinction.
Andrés said: “I am delighted to be joining Avyse. The firm has built a strong reputation for proportionate, practical advice, and that is how I like to work. I have spent much of my career helping clients understand their financial crime risks, respond to regulatory scrutiny and build controls that work in practice. I’m also excited to be joining a team that is pioneering the use of technology in compliance and developing technology solutions built by subject matter experts. I’m looking forward to helping firms fix their issues in a way that lasts.”
Johnny Attwater joins the Financial Crime team as Consultant
Johnny brings more than 15 years’ experience in financial crime compliance, combining senior in-house leadership with advisory work at international consultancies.
Johnny has led FSMA section 166 Skilled Person reviews and FCA-mandated remediation assurance, helping firms fix the underlying causes of control failures in a proportionate way. He has also led engagements supporting firms through regulatory reviews, and has helped firms design, implement and embed financial crime risk management frameworks from scratch.
In-house, Johnny directed UK compliance and group independent oversight at a global payments business, leading teams of around 30 across the UK, EEA and US and deputising for the UK Chief Compliance Officer and MLRO. In that role he also piloted an AI-assisted approach to control design testing, estimated to halve the resource required while keeping human review in place.
Johnny began in operational financial crime at Lloyds Banking Group, working in application fraud, PEP and enhanced due diligence, and conduct risk. He holds the ICA International Diploma in Anti Money Laundering.
Johnny said: “I’m pleased to be joining Avyse, a firm I’ve long respected. Its people-first culture and genuine care for clients were a big part of why I chose to join. I’ve seen regulatory reviews from every side, as the firm under scrutiny, the adviser and the Skilled Person, and I know how much difference rigorous, proportionate and practical expertise can make. I’m looking forward to working with a team that uses technology to make compliance work better, and to helping firms see where their frameworks need to improve and build controls that manage their risks in practice.”
Aimee Tickner joins the Operations team as Operations Assistant
Aimee brings a background in law and operations, holding an LLB and a Master’s in Entertainment Law. Most recently she was Head of Administration at property investment firm, where she directed administrative functions across the investment lifecycle, managed and trained the administrative team, and coordinated work between the acquisitions, sales, lettings and finance teams. Before that she managed sales progression from reservation to exchange, keeping transactions moving and compliant. That experience of running processes in a regulated, fast-paced environment means she knows how to keep the detail right and the work on schedule.
On joining, Aimee said: “I’m thrilled to be joining Avyse at such an exciting stage in its growth. From my first conversations with the team, it was clear this is a firm that values openness and fresh thinking, where ideas are welcomed and everyone is encouraged to contribute, whatever their role.
What drew me most was the environment. The team is friendly, supportive and approachable, and there is a strong set of values running through how Avyse works, both with each other and with clients. That combination of integrity, collaboration and care for doing things properly is exactly the kind of environment I wanted to be part of.
I’m looking forward to bringing my operational and legal background to the role, helping the business run smoothly as it grows.”
A message from Oliver Grimes, Partner at Avyse
“I am delighted to be welcoming Andres, Johnny, Klara and Aimee to our exceptional team at Avyse.
Andres, Johnny and Klara bring market leading expertise from both a financial crime and consulting perspective and will add to the market leading offering we promise all of our clients. This is particularly important as we see continued regulatory scrutiny on financial crime from regulators across all major financial centres.
Aimee has joined our operations team and has already got stuck in helping us to grow and scale Avyse. An exceptional advisory team requires seamless operational support and Aimee will play a vital role in keeping our day to day business running smoothly.”