James H. Freis, Jr.

James H. Freis, Jr. has devoted his professional career to promoting the integrity of the global financial markets.  He founded Market Integrity Solutions in 2020 to further good governance and better understanding of financial services regulation through advisory services to senior executives and boards of directors.  In doing so, he draws upon a broad range of regulatory and transactional experience both from a policy perspective as former regulator, and with regards to practical implementation as an executive and expert advisor.  His interests and perspective are of an international nature, having spent half his professional career based in Europe, and half in the United States, always focused on cross-border issues.  Additionally, he is a keen proponent of data-driven decision making and for promoting the application of evolving and innovative technology.

Related services led by Mr. Freis oversee venture capital investments and provide targeted legal advice.

2014 - 2020

Managing Director, Chief Compliance Officer, and Group Anti-Money Laundering Officer for the Deutsche Börse Group in Frankfurt, Germany, responsible for overseeing regulatory requirements and engaging with financial supervisors for Group entities on a global basis for this provider of financial market infrastructures.

2007 - 2012

Mr. Freis was Director (CEO) of the United States Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), the lead U.S. Government official for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing requirements, and head of the country's financial intelligence unit (FIU).

1999 - 2005

Mr. Freis served as Senior Counsel at the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland, the international organization of central banks and host to the global financial standard setting institutions.

1996 - 1999

Mr. Freis served as an Attorney at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, advising on regulatory reform; foreign government and central bank accounts; and payment and settlement system issues at wholesale and retail levels.

In June 2020, he was asked to join Wirecard AG to professionalize the global FinTech payment services provider in a newly created management board role. Within his first day, he exposed internal fraud, was promoted to CEO, and then initiated a global restructuring, later stepping down after placing the company into insolvency proceedings.

He graduated from Georgetown University, earned his Juris Doctor from Harvard University, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder. His additional professional experience was as Deputy Assistant General Counsel for Enforcement & Intelligence at the U.S. Treasury Department, and in private practice at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton.

Linkedin-in Wikipedia-w

James Freis Promoting Integrity in Global Financial Markets

Linkedin