Lead Counsel / Banking / Regulatory - VP

The Lead Counsel 2 (Regulatory) is a senior level position that sits within the Financial Services Regulatory Legal team.  The position is responsible for serving as a subject matter expert and key legal advisor to business stakeholders, functional partners, and the Legal Management Committee by providing counsel and thought leadership on aspects of legal matters related to Prudential Regulations. The overall objective of this role is to provide legal and regulatory expertise on close-out netting, collateral enforceability, and related capital and risk mitigation frameworks across global derivatives and securities financing markets.  Additional responsibilities may include other regulatory matters in respect of which the Risk Management function is a key stakeholder, including sovereign immunity assessment and obligor risk weight assessments under applicable capital rules.

This role requires a pragmatic, proactive attorney with thorough understanding of financial markets and transactional documentation.  This should ideally be combined with a solid conceptual and practical grounding in the laws and regulations for the geographies in which we operate, as it relates to derivatives, netting, and prudential regulation. Provides input into strategic decisions, exercising sound legal judgement to develop proactive, risk-appropriate, and commercially business-oriented solutions.

Responsibilities:

• Perform legal review, analysis, and ongoing maintenance of global netting and collateral enforceability opinions across multiple jurisdictions.

• Serve as a primary subject matter expert, providing comprehensive legal advisory services to internal stakeholders on the enforceability and robustness of risk mitigation strategies (including close-out netting and collateral arrangements), and offering expert oversight, ensuring consistency, robustness, and regulatory compliance across multiple geographies and exposure types.

• Continuously monitor, analyze, and anticipate evolving global financial regulations (e.g., Basel III/ IV, derivatives reforms), including those related to netting, collateral, and capital requirements.

• Provide interpretation and strategic guidance on the impact of complex prudential regulations (e.g., Basel III/IV, CRR/CRD, EMIR, Dodd-Frank) on netting, exposure measurement, and capital adequacy to key internal stakeholders, ensuring robust and compliant application across various business activities.

• Manage and coordinate engagements with external legal counsel to procure up-to-date analysis aligned with prevailing market practices and evolving regulatory expectations.

• Proactively identify, assess, and mitigate legal, regulatory, and reputational risks through close collaboration with internal control and risk management teams, continuous monitoring of legal developments, and active participation in strategic internal projects.

• Drive capital optimization by providing legal guidance on the structuring and support for netting and collateral arrangements, aiming to maximize capital relief and enhance liquidity for business operations under relevant regulatory frameworks.

• Support other regulatory matters in respect of which the Risk Management function is a key stakeholder, including sovereign immunity assessment and obligor risk weight assessments under applicable capital rules.

• Foster robust cross-functional partnerships with Legal, Risk Management, Front Office Business Units (e.g., Trading, Sales), Operations, and Finance teams to seamlessly integrate enforceability determinations into capital calculation methodologies and operational processes.

• Appropriately assess risk when business decisions are made, demonstrating particular consideration for the firm's reputation and safeguarding Citigroup, its clients and assets, by driving compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations, adhering to Policy, applying sound ethical judgment regarding personal behaviour, conduct and business practices, and escalating, managing and reporting control issues with transparency, as well as effectively supervise the activity of others and create accountability with those who fail to maintain these standards.

Qualifications:

• At least 2 years relevant industry experience, preferably in financial services

• Banking or financial industry experience, including laws related to banking regulations

• Comprehensive knowledge of international laws, regulations and practices while staying abreast of regulatory and legal environment, internal policies and industry trends that impact the business

• Experience with complex deals, demonstrated ability to analyze issues and develop legal solutions