This week’s Up-and-Comer is Brendtly Lauck, a financial crimes analyst for Meta Payment Systems.

Name: Brendtly M. Lauck

Age: 22

Hometown: Sioux Falls

Education: Graduated from the University of South Dakota in 2016

Job: Financial crimes analyst – case investigations in the financial intelligence unit, or FIU, within Meta Payment Systems, a division of MetaBank

What brought you to Sioux Falls?

Well, just to be fair I did try to break the stereotype of coming back home after college and searched for career opportunities outside of South Dakota. However, with the rapid growth of Sioux Falls along with career opportunities for young professionals, I felt like it would be in my best interest to come back home and get some needed professional experience out of college. So far, the decision to move back to where I was raised has paid off, and I am sure it will continue to do so. I do not plan on leaving anytime soon.

What keeps you in Sioux Falls?

What really keeps me in Sioux Falls is the room for growth and exciting things to do on the weekends. Sioux Falls has so many opportunities for those of us (millennials) who want to get involved and work hard. It is really one of the best cities to start a career in as a young professional. I recently moved to downtown Sioux Falls and have enjoyed all it has to offer. I initially planned on staying home after college for just a few years. Now, it has been a little over a year, and I can honestly say that I plan to stay in Sioux Falls well into the foreseeable future.

What’s your favorite thing about your job?

Meta Payment Systems is considered a fintech (financial technology) company, which provides products and services for businesses and consumers to use locally as well as worldwide. I, along with our experienced case investigations team in the FIU, oversee investigating and reporting instances of financial crime, which may include fraud and money laundering.

The most satisfying thing we do is protecting our customers and the company from risk and financial losses. I am lucky to have a career that mixes the things I love: analytics, technology and criminal investigations. The best part about my job is knowing that identification of financial crime may help law enforcement.

How did you get connected to your industry?

Well that is a story, but I will keep it short. I was a criminal justice studies and business administration major at the University of South Dakota. During my time at USD, I was an intern at the Office of Consumer Protection within the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation. The exposure I received there sparked my interest in financial crime investigations, and I also made some great connections. One thing led to another, and I ended up speaking with a few individuals employed by Meta Payment Systems and interviewed shortly after. And I am also constantly getting more connections in my field through my Certified Financial Crimes Specialist, or CFCS, network along with LinkedIn.

Describe Meta in three words.

Enjoyable. Engaging. Growing.

What’s one business you’d like to see in Sioux Falls that isn’t here now?

I know most agree that Sioux Falls could use Uber or Lyft. However, I would like to see Sioux Falls get a Chipotle. If a Chipotle were to open, I would be the first one in line on opening day, and I would probably eat there a few times a week/day.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

I always try to have both personal and professional goals. After graduating college, my primary goal was to show my employers that not every millennial has the “millennial mindset,” and that some of us truly want to get established and put in the work. In regards to personal goals, in five years I see myself still living in Sioux Falls and starting to solidify my place in the community.

Professionally, in the next few years I plan on receiving my Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, or CAMS, certification along with my Certified Fraud Examiner, or CFE, certification. In five years, I also see myself still working for Meta Payment Systems/MetaBank. They have a lot to offer and are constantly growing. Every day there are people joining different divisions of the organization, and I love seeing the amount of growth even in the time I have been employed.