Head of Commercial and Regulatory Legal in London

Clear Junction is a global payments company licensed and regulated by the FCA in the UK. It offers regulated end-to-end payment solutions based on proprietary in-house technology. The company's infrastructure is designed to meet the growing needs of global financial companies. Founded in 2016, Clear Junction has experienced consistent double-digit growth year on year, with over 150 fintech professionals now based across the UK and mainland Europe. As the fastest-growing, founder‐led, privately owned business in the UK, Clear Junction has been recognised as one of the fastest‐growing privately held companies in The Sunday Times 100 List. It is also ranked by Financial Times as one of Europe's top 1000 growing companies.

About the role

We are looking for a hands‐on and experienced legal professional to head our Commercial and Regulatory Legal function at Clear Junction. This role is focused on day‐to‐day legal delivery, people leadership, and solid execution across our commercial and regulatory legal work. You will lead and develop our legal team while remaining deeply involved in complex legal matters yourself, including hands‐on drafting of contracts, policies and other legal documentation. This position is based in London, UK.

• Provide accurate, timely and commercially‐focused legal advice to management and other stakeholders across commercial contracts, regulatory matters, corporate governance, internal policies, and, where required, employment and data protection issues.
• Lead, mentor and develop the Commercial and Regulatory Legal team, balancing hands‐on legal work with effective delegation and oversight.
• Act as the escalation point for complex or high‐risk commercial and regulatory legal matters.
• Draft, review and negotiate a broad range of legal documents (both personally and through effective delegation), including client agreements, terms & conditions, banking partner agreements, vendor agreements, marketing materials, NDAs and intra‐group documentation.
• Assess and manage legal and regulatory risks linked to business decisions, products, services, markets and counterparties, providing proactive and pragmatic guidance.
• Arrange tracking of changes in UK, EU and international legislation relevant to the payments and financial services sector and translate them into practical legal guidance for the business.
• Support regulatory audits, health checks and interactions with regulators, auditors and external legal counsel.
• Collaborate closely with Risk, Fraud, AML, Product, Sales, Operations, Finance and HR teams to ensure legal alignment with regulatory and business requirements.
• Contribute to the development, review and improvement of legal policies, procedures, templates and legal know‐how across the Group.
• Support cross‐jurisdictional projects across the Clear Junction Group, ensuring a consistent legal approach.
• Maintain appropriate legal documentation, records and audit trails in line with regulatory expectations.
• Monitor team performance against agreed KPIs and delivery standards, and support recruitment, onboarding and training within the legal team.

What We're Looking For

• Proven experience as a Senior Legal Counsel / Lead Legal Counsel / Principal‐level lawyer, ideally within fintech, payments, financial services, or another regulated environment.
• Strong technical expertise in corporate, commercial, and regulatory law, including AML, FinCrime, and financial services regulations.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, and develop legal teams while managing external advisors effectively.
• Comfortable operating in a hands‐on, delivery‐focused role rather than a purely strategic or advisory position.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence and collaborate across multiple jurisdictions and business functions.
• Commercially astute, pragmatic, and solutions‐focused approach to legal advice.
• Highly organised, proactive, and comfortable managing complex legal projects in a fast‐paced environment.

Why Join Us?

• A genuinely impactful legal leadership role in a growing, regulated fintech.
• Broad exposure across commercial, regulatory, and operational legal work.
• The opportunity to shape and strengthen how legal supports the business - without being removed from the detail.
• A collaborative, high‐trust environment with strong cross‐functional engagement.
• 25 days holiday (plus bank holidays)
• Private Medical Insurance: You will be eligible for our full Private Medical & Dental Cover (after probationary period)
• Life Assurance
• Employee Assistance Programme plus Rewards and Perks Discount with YuLife
• Enhanced Company Pension Scheme
• Hybrid working arrangement with minimum 3 days per week working in the office.