Washington, DC — February 23, 2026 — Porta Strategies is proud to announce the appointment of Ryan Igbanol, Esq. as Advisor for Sanctions, Financial Crime, and Judicial Reform, strengthening the firm’s leadership bench across national security–relevant compliance, complex investigations, and rule-of-law initiatives.
Ryan brings the rare, end-to-end perspective that leaders need when sanctions, geopolitics, and enterprise risk collide. He has sat in the investigator’s chair, the regulator’s conference room, and the C-suite—translating global risk into practical, defensible action.
A Track Record Spanning Government, Global Finance, and Enterprise Compliance
Ryan is a senior sanctions and financial crime expert whose career covers the full lifecycle of risk—from investigation and designation to program design, implementation, remediation, and regulatory engagement. In the U.S. public sector, he served as an Economic Sanctions Investigator at the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), leading complex cases against individuals and entities for potential designation under U.S. sanctions programs. His work combined all-source research, Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) data, subpoenaed records, intelligence reporting, and foreign government inputs, and included drafting sanctions targeting packages and advising on escalated transactions, and delisting petitions.
In the private sector, Ryan has led enterprise-wide sanctions and AML programs at major financial institutions. Most recently as Regional Compliance Officer for the Americas at AIG, he oversaw sanctions and AML compliance across North America, Mexico, and Central and South America—heading the regional Financial Crime Compliance advisory function, serving as the escalation point for sanctions/AML risk, conducting complex investigations and transactional lookbacks, and aligning BSA/USA PATRIOT Act requirements with practical, risk-based controls across diverse business lines.
Previously, Ryan held senior leadership roles including Senior Vice President for Trade Product Compliance at Citibank and Head of Global Sanctions Advisory at Capital One Financial. In these positions, he advised business leadership on sanctions risks and controls, trade finance, and export-control risk; led enterprise sanctions risk assessments; and served as the primary point of contact with OFAC for voluntary self-disclosures, licensing matters, and regulatory inquiries. He also partnered closely with technology teams to enhance sanctions screening and payments filtering systems and built targeted training programs informed by real-world geopolitical developments.
Rule-of-Law & Judicial Reform Expertise
Beyond financial crime, Ryan has contributed to rule-of-law and governance efforts in post-conflict environments. He supported Kosovo’s constitution-drafting process as Legislative History Coordinator for World Learning (a USAID implementer) and served as a Law Clerk with the National Center for State Courts, contributing to judicial reform, improving administration of Kosovo courts, legislative review, and the development of a nationwide notary system. This blend of sanctions acumen and judicial reform experience uniquely positions him to advise on programs that pair economic pressure tools with institution-building—a critical combination for durable outcomes.
Sanctions and financial crime controls are most effective when they’re paired with resilient legal institutions and our firm is looking forward to having Ryan Igbanol on our team to help clients navigate complex cross-border risks while advancing rule-of-law outcomes that endure.
What Ryan Brings to Porta Strategies Clients
- End-to-end sanctions leadership: Design, calibrate, and test sanctions frameworks that stand up to regulatory scrutiny and real-world operations.
- Investigations & remediation: Lead complex lookbacks, forensic reviews, and remediation programs following enforcement events or material findings.
- Regulatory engagement: Prepare senior leaders for exams, self-disclosures, and licensing matters—with clear narratives, defensible analytics, and credible corrective actions.
- Geopolitically informed training: Deliver executive and board-level training that connects geopolitics to control design, screening effectiveness, and payments risk.
- Judicial reform advisory: Pair sanctions strategy with rule-of-law programming and governance reforms to support sustainable compliance outcomes in high-risk jurisdictions.
Learn more about Ryan here.