Leading express service provider DHL Express announced yesterday that it will increase its workforce by 40 percent at its Asia Pacific Export Compliance Center (APECC) in Kuala Lumpur by the end of the year.

Raymond Yee, vice president of customs and regulatory affairs at DHL Express Asia Pacific, said shipping across borders is a complex process involving different regulations and requirements for every country and agency, which is made even more complex with some countries having laws that apply extraterritorially.

Overseeing the thousands of outbound shipments from Asia Pacific, DHL says the export compliance centre is responsible for ensuring that non-compliant shipments are sorted out.

With the surge in e-commerce shipment volumes, the centre leverages on artificial intelligence (AI) to compare recent data and transactions of previous shipments and alerting employees when there are anomalies.

Ken Lee, CEO of DHL Express Asia Pacific, said the export compliance centre plays an important role in ensuring shipments through its network comply with legal and regulatory frameworks across the globe.

“More than a million shipments pass through our global network daily. To remain the provider-of-choice, it’s critically important that we stay on top of regulatory changes across the 40 markets in the region so that we deliver the best service to our customers,” said Lee.

The export compliance center in Malaysia, established in 2015, is one of the three centers globally, with one located in Europe and another in Central America.

DHL Express said its export compliance officers are globally certified by the International Compliance Association, a leading professional body for global regulatory and financial crime compliance. Those joining the team will undergo regular training, particularly when new sanctions emerge.