Compliance Officer in Slough

Company Description: Lendwise is a London-based, FCA-regulated peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform dedicated to making education financing accessible. We offer tailored loans to aspiring students and provide investors with competitive returns. We are a Fintech business with a mission-driven team dedicated to funding the ambitions of individuals pursuing postgraduate education.

Role Description: We are seeking a hardworking, dynamic, and versatile individual to join our growing team as a Compliance Associate. This position is designed for a junior professional with 3-4 years experience in Compliance within the Financial Services sector. You will be looking to build upon your solid start to your career with a leading Fintech company by ensuring our operations meet the highest regulatory standards. This is a full-time on-site role for a Compliance Officer based in London. The primary focus of this role is within our Compliance & Risk team, where you will help maintain the integrity of our platform. You will be responsible for ensuring that our internal processes align with FCA requirements and data protection laws, acting as a vital check-and-balance for the business. This includes undertaking ongoing compliance monitoring and ensuring that our regulatory returns are completed and filed on time. You will support the company in its mission by ensuring ethical standards and financial regulations are upheld at all times.

Key Responsibilities:

• Regulatory Monitoring & AML (Primary Focus)
• Onboarding Oversight: Conducting and reviewing KYC and AML checks to ensure all borrowers and investors meet regulatory requirements. Liaising with the MLRO for higher risk transactions and assisting them to undertake follow-on checks where needed.
• Transaction Monitoring: Assisting in monitoring platform activity to identify and investigate potentially suspicious behaviour or financial crime.
• Regulatory filings: Owning the regulatory filings for the firm through the REGDATA system, ensuring that returns are completed consistently, accurately and in a timely manner.
• Policy Implementation: Assisting in the ongoing maintenance, review and update of internal compliance and other associated policies, ensuring they reflect relevant regulatory updates.
• Compliance Monitoring: Undertaking cyclical risk-based compliance monitoring, to ensure the firm remains compliant with the regulatory rules and requirements that apply to it. This will include drafting monitoring reports for submission to the Compliance & Risk Committee and assisting in implementing recommended improvements.
• Business Support & Advisory
• Marketing Review: Working closely with the marketing and product teams to ensure all outward-facing communications and promotions are fair, clear, and not misleading, are in plain English and support good customer outcomes.
• Internal Liaison: Acting as a point of contact for internal departments for compliance and financial crime queries.
• Data Protection: Supporting the implementation of GDPR standards and help manage data subject access requests or privacy inquiries.
• Recognising and championing improvements: Recommending policy and procedure improvements across the customer journey where identified and working with the relevant team to implement those improvements where appropriate.

What We Are Looking For:

• Versatility: You must be able to pivot between detailed, technical document reviews and providing clear, professional advice to your colleagues.
• Communication: Exceptional verbal and written English; you should be comfortable explaining complex regulatory rules in a simple, professional manner.
• Previous Experience: Prior experience in a junior compliance, risk, or paralegal role within a financial services organisation is preferred.
• Analytical Mindset: An eye for detail and a comfort with data; proficiency in MS Office (especially Excel) is required.
• Education: An undergraduate degree is preferred but not required, specifically in Law, Finance, or Business.
• Regulatory Interest: A genuine interest in the FCA-regulated environment, financial crime prevention, and data protection (GDPR) is a must.
• Problem Solving: A logical, ethical approach to resolving conflicts and finding solutions that protect both the company and our customers.
• Proactive, "self-starter" attitude toward improving internal controls and processes.
• Analytical skills: Strong Analytical Skills to assess risks and implement compliance procedures.
• Effective Communication skills to collaborate with internal teams and engage with regulatory authorities.
• Knowledge of Finance processes and regulatory requirements in the financial sector.
• Organised and detail-oriented with the ability to manage multiple priorities.