Chief Operating Officer
hace 1 día
City of London
Company description At MENA FS we are establishing an inclusive NEO bank with a Shariah ethos, to provide customers with a world class banking experience. We have completed the Prudential Regulation Authority’s (PRA) New Bank Start-Up Unit (NBSU) pre-application ‘initial’ stage and have been advised to establish a full Board to progress through pre-application stages to authorisation. This is an exciting and rare opportunity to create a bank from the ground up, shape its strategic direction, and deliver a world-class NEO bank. Role: Chief Operating Officer (COO) – Senior Management Function 24 (SMF24). Contract type: Part-time Consultancy contract until milestone 4, then full time. Location: Initially remote working, hybrid working when full time. As a startup we can offer accrued cash remuneration and equity vesting. Milestone cash payments: £11,000 accrued1 and 0.5% equity vested per key milestone (Total: £44,000 (without performance bonus) and 2% vested equity after Milestone 4). Performance bonus: • 10 % (£4,400) for on-time submission if Milestone 4 (Banking licence application submission) within 6 months is attained – approved by the Chair (INEC)., • 10% (£4,400) for positive regulator feedback after the submission of the banking licence – approved by the Chair (INEC)., • Full time employment contract from the date of submission to be confirmed by the Chair (INEC)., • Salary: £120,000pa pro-rated from commencement of full time contract for the remainder of the leave year. Milestones and payout triggers Milestone 1: Pre-application “Feedback”. • Trigger: Receiving a feedback letter progressing onto the ‘Challenge’ stage., • Cash vest: Paid after Milestone 3¹., • Trigger: Receiving a feedback letter concluding the ‘Challenge’ stage or an invitation to submit banking licence application., • Cash vest: Paid after Milestone 3¹., • Trigger: Successful close of the investment round., • Cash vest: Combined payment¹., • Trigger: Acknowledgement of the banking licence application., • Cash vest: Paid at Milestone 4., • Equity vest: 0.5%. 1Milestones 1–3 cash is combined and paid in one tranche after Milestone 3 and approved by the Chair (INEC). Subject to successful fundraising and FCA/PRA approval. Role summary As Chief Operating Officer (SMF24), you will operationalise our vision into building our operations and technology infrastructure. You will work alongside the Founder, Co-Founder, CEO, CFO, Chair (INEC) and Chief Risk & Compliance Officer to iterate and deliver the regulated business plan (RBP), progress through the pre-application stages and authorisations and deliver our AI, technology and cloud strategy, ensuring full regulatory compliance. Key responsibilities · Strategic o Develop and implement the AI, technology and cloud roadmap, aligned to our strategic vision and future growth strategy. o Select and manage technology vendors to support scalable, regulatory compliant banking services aligned to the vision and strategy. o Establish detailed timelines for critical systems, core banking, Know Your Customer (KYC) / Anit Money Laundering (AML), AI engines, app building and technology integrations, build, test and launch. · RBP development o Incorporate feedback from the pre-application stages into system policies, processes, controls, vendor selection, outsourcing and governance. o Design and implement KYC/AML policies systems, processes, transaction monitoring, onboarding and customer life cycles. o Estimate the potential for delays and develop risk mitigation strategies. o Develop and maintain a detailed risk management framework and risk register. o Ensure FCA consumer duty is embedded in all systems, processes and customer touchpoints. · Outsourcing and vendor management o Design and implement an outsourcing and vendor management framework. o Define vendor selection criteria for technology, AI, cloud and data service providers. o Design and implement a framework for ongoing oversight and monitoring of technology and services. o Develop and implement operational framework, systems and processes with clear escalation and resolution paths. o Negotiate contracts, Service Level Agreements SLA in line with regulations and giving due consideration to the Senior Management Arrangements, Systems and Controls (SYSC 8) general outsourcing and operational resilience requirements. · Business continuity (BC) and disaster recovery (DR) o Develop and implement BC/DR frameworks. o Assign roles and responsibilities for incident response, crisis management and plan testing. o Develop and implement operational framework, systems and processes with clear escalation and resolution paths. · Day-to-day operations o Manage operational workflows, identify inefficiencies; opportunities for automation. o Identify, design and implement the latest technology and AI to continuously improve customer experience, products, features and services. o Establish a continuous feedback loop with technology, risk and customer teams to improve delivery. · Teamwork and Board delivery o Create a high performance executive team, collaborating with the Founder, Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Finance Officer (CFO), Chief Risk Compliance Officer (CRCO), and Independent Non Executive Chair (INEC) to iterate and deliver the Regulated Business Plan (RBP). o Lead and manage cross-functional teams to execute the bank’s strategic plan. · Environmental, Sustainability and Governance (ESG) o Embed ESG, diversity equality and inclusion into all our operations, products and services. o Fulfil and comply with requirements of Senior Management Certificate Regime (SMCR). o Promote a culture of good governance adhering to our ethics and best practices in governance. · Shariah principles and UN Sustainability Development Goal’s (UNSDG’s) o Ensure all products, services and internal/external partnerships align to Shariah principles and UNSDGs. · Consumer duty o Ensure Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) consumer duty is embedded throughout the RBP and operationalised. · Regulatory compliance o Develop and implement operational frameworks, systems and processes which comply with PRA/FCA regulations. o Ensure compliance with banking regulations, including FCA reporting regimes, Anti Money Laundering (AML) / Counter Terrorism Finance (CTF) requirements, fitness and propriety, conduct rules, and prescribed responsibilities, including annual reviews and disclosure obligations. o Proactively maintain an excellent working relationship with regulators and incorporate regulatory feedback in the RBP. Requirements Essential · Proven COO or equivalent senior-leadership experience in regulated financial services or fintech startup. · Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Operations Management, Information Systems, Engineering or equivalent field. · Proven experience architecting and delivering end to end cloud native core banking, AI engines, Know Your Customer (KYC) / Anti Money Laundering (AML) and technology integrations in regulated or fintech environment. · Demonstrable experience of implementing and testing Business Community (BC) and Disaster Recovery (DR) frameworks. · Hands on experience designing and running vendor management and outsourcing frameworks in line with Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) Senior Management Arrangements, Systems and Controls SYSC 8 operational resilience requirements. · Experience of building KYC/AML polices, transaction monitoring systems and onboarding workflows from the ground up. · Competent in developing risk mitigation strategies, risk registers, KPI’s and embedding Consumer Duty controls into systems and customer touchpoints. · Proven ability to optimise operational workflows, identify automation opportunities and manage incident response processes. · Excellent project management skills; setting roadmaps, tracking milestones, co-ordinating cross functional teams. Expert knowledge of AI, cloud, vendor ecosystems in fintech. · Must be able to obtain approval from PRA/FCA for SMCR functions. · Familiar with Shariah and ethical finance or willingness to learn. · Detailed knowledge of UK banking regulations. · Must by willing to attend in person, NBSU meetings and investor pitches. Desirable · Understanding of United Nations Sustainability Goals (UNSDGs) for financial institutions. · Advanced certification in security or system architecture (ie, AWS / Azure / GCP etc) . · Experience with Agile / DevOps practices and data platform rollouts. · Familiar with shariah complaint technology standards or ethical finance operating models. · Demonstratable experience in scaling operational teams in a Startup or new bank authorisation environment. · Familiar with United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (UN SGDs).