Head of Risk Underwriting Location: London Reports to: Chief Risk Officer My client is an exciting new start-up in the Payments space who are building the future of Payments. They are looking for a Head of Risk Underwriting to join the team and play a mission-critical role in shaping the risk framework from the ground up. This is a fantastic role if you want to:Shape the risk foundation of a fintech from day oneWork alongside a team of experienced operators and buildersHave the opportunity to grow as the company scales Key ResponsibilitiesBuild the Underwriting Function: Design and implement end-to-end underwriting processes tailored to a digital-first payments business.Policy Development: Establish risk acceptance policies, credit exposure limits, and transaction monitoring thresholds across customer segments.Customer Risk Assessment: Oversee onboarding risk reviews, KYB assessments, and underwriting decisions for new merchants or partners.Risk Frameworks: Develop and maintain risk scoring models and automated decisioning tools in collaboration with data and product teams.Portfolio Monitoring: Monitor risk performance and early warning indicators across the merchant portfolio, proactively identifying emerging risks.Cross-functional Collaboration: Work with Legal, Compliance, Product, and Engineering teams to ensure risk controls are embedded into product workflows.Regulatory Readiness: Support regulatory obligations (e.g., PSD2, AMLD, or local frameworks) as they relate to underwriting and customer due diligence.Team Leadership: Build and manage a lean, high-performing risk team as the business scales.What We\'re Looking For5+ years of experience in Credit Risk Must have Payments experience Proven ability to design underwriting policies and frameworks from scratch.Strong analytical skills and comfort with data tools; ability to define and interpret risk metrics and reporting.Familiarity with regulatory requirements related to payments, fraud, and financial crime.Experience working in a start-up or high-growth, fast-paced environment.Ability to balance commercial outcomes with robust risk controls.Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.Entrepreneurial mindset and a bias for action.
