A journey of integrity and impact

Growing up, I watched my father work tirelessly as the sole breadwinner, weighed down by mounting debt. Despite his best efforts, our mortgage balance never seemed to shrink, and the looming threat of foreclosure haunted us. I’ll never forget the day I saw our house listed in the newspaper for tender. It felt like everything was falling apart.

My father regularly visited the financial institution for answers, only to return defeated. Eventually, we discovered that the banker had failed to deposit his payments, leaving us vulnerable and without evidence. Watching him against an unfair system ignited a deep sense of injustice in me. I realised I wanted to make a difference - not just for my family but for others facing similar predicaments.

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Picture of Malvika Prasad and her family.

Driving meaningful impact

Determined to create change, I excelled in my studies, focusing on law and finance. This commitment evolved into a passion for fraud investigation and risk management. I began my career as a Senior Auditor with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), then moved to an Assurance Analyst role within the Risk Team at Pacific Operations. Today, I’m proud to have progressed to become a Senior Investigator in Group Integrity (GI), where I engage with teams across the bank and around the world, driving meaningful impact in the work I do.

One of the most rewarding aspects of my current role is the opportunity to collaborate with stakeholders from legal, compliance, and operations teams, using advanced forensic tools to detect and respond to emerging threats. The ability to safeguard our organisation and its customers is something I take immense pride in.

A strong sense of purpose

What truly sets Group Risk at ANZ apart is its culture.

From day one, I’ve felt valued and empowered, which has given me a strong sense of purpose.

A particularly memorable moment for me was receiving the Group Risk Award for my work on one of the largest internal fraud investigations in the Pacific. This case required reviewing hundreds of documents and investigating more than 30 employees, ultimately leading hundreds of criminal charges, and a custodial sentence for the primary offender.

Like any role, working in GI comes with its challenges. Investigators often need to travel to other locations for case work, which can mean time away from family. For instance, during one of these trips, I was away for weeks from my son, Mahar, who was not even two years old. I also missed Mother’s Day while abroad to investigate a romance scam, which led to the closure of over 40 fraudulent beneficiary accounts.

Despite these challenges, the sense of purpose and the impact of our work make it all worthwhile. GI strives to be recognised as a function willing to assist proactively. Our approach goes beyond traditional risk mitigation, tackling complex issues like fraud prevention, internal misconduct, and emerging threats.

Embrace challenges as opportunities

The field of fraud investigation is constantly evolving, allowing me to learn and grow through new analytical techniques and emerging fraud trends. I believe advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data analytics will significantly impact our industry. To improve my skills, I recently attended the GI New Zealand workplace investigations workshop and actively participate in ANZ’s Academy classes.

I am currently studying a Postgraduate in Forensic Accounting and Fraud Investigation (completing in April 2025) and perusing a Masters in Professional Accounting from the University of the South Pacific.

If there’s one piece of advice I would offer to anyone considering a career in Group Risk, it’s this: Embrace challenges as opportunities to grow. Working in this field is not just about mitigating risks; it’s about making real, lasting difference for the organisation and our customers.

Reflecting on my journey, I carry my father’s experience with me; it fuels my determination to protect others and ensure that no one feels as vulnerable as he did.

Each case I work on serves as a reminder of the promise I made to myself long ago: to be the advocate I wished my father had, and to ensure integrity prevails in everything I do.

Malvika Prasad is a Senior Investigator, Risk at ANZ