Sr. Director, Regulated Financial Risk Operations (Europe)

SENIOR DIRECTOR REGULATED FINANCIAL RISK OPERATIONS / DUBLIN / HYBRID / PERMANENT/ €140,000- €160,000 PLUS BENEFITS 

About the Team / Role

The Sr. Director, Regulated Financial Operations (Europe) is a newly created, highly visible, and critical executive leadership position responsible for the strategic oversight, operational excellence and the finance operations regulatory compliance of WEX's regulated Electronic Money Institution (EMI) financial operations in Europe, including Optal Financial Europe Limited (OFEL) and Optal Financial Limited (OFL). This role will report directly to the SVP of Global Risk Operations.

What’s on offer?

• Highly competitive salary of €140,000-€160,000 (Dependant on experience)

• Annual company bonus

• 40 hour week- Monday to Friday, no evenings or weekends

• Hybrid working (2-3 days per week in our Dublin Office)

• Industry leading pension scheme

• 25 days plus bank holidays

• Group Life assurance

• Private Medical Insurance

• Employee Wellbeing

How you’ll make an impact 

Strategic & Regulatory Governance

• Executive Oversight: Provide executive leadership and hold internal executive accountability for the design and operational effectiveness of the safeguarding governance framework across all regulated European EMI entities (OFL/FCA and OFEL/CBI).

• Risk Mitigation & Bench Strength: Be the accountable leader for mitigating key person risk by establishing robust succession planning, developing the leadership team, and ensuring process redundancy and cross-training across all critical financial operations functions.

• Regulatory Relationship Management: In partnership with the respective Finance Directors and the International Compliance Team, develop and maintain a senior-level relationship with the regulators (CBI and FCA) on finance-related matters.

• Compliance Framework: Own and execute the overall financial controls and risk framework for the regulated entities, ensuring strict adherence to Client Money (CM) Safeguarding Rules and Capital Adequacy requirements, and ensuring appropriate escalation of all emerging financial risks.

• Oversight & Attestations: Oversee the fulfillment of all Outsourced Service Provider (OSP) obligations related to regulated finance activities and be responsible for providing formal attestations to the Board (of the regulated entities) on the adequacy of safeguarding arrangements and controls.

Operational Excellence and Scalability

• Financial Operations Management: Direct and unify the strategy for core financial operations, including Client Money Safeguarding, scheme settlement, balance sheet reconciliation, treasury operations, and payment operations for all European regulated entities.

• Leadership and Coaching: Directly manage and mentor a team of senior leaders, including the Director, Financial Operations International (UK), Finance Director, OFEL (Ireland), and the Finance Operations Manager fostering a culture of high performance, accountability, and professional development.

• Outsourced Provider Oversight (OSP): Own the governance and performance of all Outsourced Service Provider (OSP) obligations where the Financial Operations team provides or receives services, ensuring contract adherence, service level agreement (SLA) compliance, and effective risk mitigation.

• Process Transformation: Champion operational excellence by identifying and directing major initiatives for process improvement, simplification, and leveraging automation and AI tools to drive efficiency and scale operations to support enterprise growth.

Reporting and Financial Management

• Statutory & Board Reporting: Oversee and review the preparation of statutory and monthly/annual financial accounts for all regulated entities. Ensure the preparation and presentation of comprehensive and insightful board reports, key performance indicators (KPIs), and key risk indicators (KRIs) for the regulated entity Boards and WEX Group senior leadership.

• Capital Adequacy: Oversee the regular assessment and reporting of the company's capital adequacy, stress testing, and integration of capital planning into strategic forecasts, in line with CBI/FCA requirements.

• Audit Partnership: