Head of Central Banks & Capital Markets Team, UK & Ireland in London

We’re the world’s leading provider of secure financial messaging services, headquartered in Belgium. We are the way the world moves value – across borders, through cities and overseas. No other organisation can address the scale, precision, pace and trust that this demands, and we’re proud to support the global economy.

We are seeking a Senior Commercial Team Manager to lead commercial strategy, client growth, and team performance across a portfolio of Central Banks and Capital Markets clients within the UK & Ireland. This senior-level people manager role is accountable for translating business strategy into commercially focused plans, building trusted relationships with senior client and industry stakeholders, and ensuring the organisation is positioned as the solution of choice in a complex and evolving financial ecosystem.

Role Overview: The Senior Commercial Team Manager defines, proposes, and leads commercial plans for assigned areas of responsibility, ensuring alignment with regional and organisational objectives. The role manages the delivery of short- and long-term commercial outcomes, oversees major client relationships and initiatives, and provides leadership to a team of commercial account managers.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define, propose, and lead commercial strategy and plans for the UK & Ireland Central Banks and Capital Markets team, industry engagement, regional programmes, and strategic initiatives.
• Partner with senior management to shape short- and medium-term commercial priorities, ensuring team and regional objectives are translated into clear team and individual goals.
• Plan, coordinate, and oversee commercial activities, industry engagement, and account plans to drive business growth, achieve team and regional targets, and deliver measurable client and business outcomes.
• Own and strengthen long-term relationships with major clients and senior stakeholders, ensuring client needs, strategies, risks, and concerns are understood, anticipated, and addressed.
• Identify market opportunities, client needs, and competitive developments, using insight to influence commercial direction, improve the value proposition, and support business development.
• Lead the implementation of large-scale business plans, client initiatives, Central Bank and market infrastructure engagements, or strategic programmes by coordinating activities across teams, divisions, and regions.
• Act as the senior point of contact for major accounts, clients, market infrastructures, or initiatives, representing the organisation with credibility in client meetings, industry bodies, and external forums.
• Ensure effective liaison with internal divisions and departments to provide coordinated service, integrated solutions, market intelligence, product feedback, and relevant training or information to commercial account management teams.
• Promote the organisation as the solution of choice within the assigned area by strengthening market presence, building advocacy, and ensuring consistent representation of the organisation’s capabilities.
• Hire, coach, reward, motivate, and develop team members, ensuring the department has the capability, engagement, and leadership depth required to deliver against current and future objectives.
• Prepare, propose, substantiate, and manage departmental budgets, including allocation of approved budget, authorisation of expenditures, and assessment of budget performance.
• Model organisational values, promote collaboration across teams and regions, and create an inclusive environment that supports performance, learning, and knowledge sharing.

What to Expect:

• Accountability for significant decisions: Makes and takes accountability for operational and tactical decisions with meaningful business impact, including under conditions of pressure, adversity, and uncertainty.
• Commercial leadership: Applies business and management principles to improve commercial performance, shape account and market strategies, and strengthen the organisation’s competitive position.
• Client and market influence: Builds trusted relationships with senior clients and industry stakeholders, translates complex needs into practical solutions, and promotes client focus across the team.
• Operational excellence: Sets clear standards for quality, reliability, client satisfaction, and disciplined execution, while encouraging continuous improvement across the department.
• People and team leadership: Forms, mobilises, and develops teams; recognises different contributions; builds capability; and creates conditions for strong performance and engagement.
• Knowledge sharing and capability building: Ensures commercial, client, market, and product knowledge is retained, shared, and used to advance organisational capability.
• Communication in complex environments: Communicates business strategies, corporate priorities, and client messages clearly in challenging circumstances and adapts communication style across senior, multilingual, and multicultural audiences.

What Will Make You Successful:

• At least 10 years of relevant experience in sales, relationship management, business consulting, or commercial leadership, including significant experience in the financial services or financial technology industry.
• Demonstrated experience managing a commercial team, department, or portfolio, with accountability for short- and medium-term business results.
• Experience owning major accounts, market infrastructures, strategic client initiatives, or regional commercial programmes.
• Strong understanding of commercial strategy, account planning, business development, consultative selling, client relationship management, and market dynamics.
• Proven ability to engage and influence senior client stakeholders, industry bodies, internal leaders, and cross-functional partners.
• Experience preparing, managing, and monitoring departmental budgets, including resource allocation and expenditure decisions.
• Ability to lead through ambiguity, manage competing priorities, and make sound decisions in complex, high-pressure environments.
• Track record of coaching and developing commercial talent, building team capability, and strengthening knowledge sharing across teams or regions.

Education: University degree or equivalent experience in business, finance, economics, technology, or a related field.

Preferred Domains: Market Infrastructures / Relationship Management / Commercial Sales / Business Consulting / Financial Services / Financial Technology

What we offer: We give you the freedom to be yourself. We are creating an environment of unique individuals – like you – with different perspectives on the financial industry and the world. A diverse and inclusive environment in which everyone’s voice counts and where you can reach your full potential.

We are committed to an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation related to accessibility during your application or interview, please contact or indicate this in your application. Please note that this mailbox is not monitored for general recruitment enquiries and should only be used for accessibility or accommodation-related requests (for example related to vision, hearing or neurodiversity). All requests are confidential and will not affect your candidacy.

Don’t meet every single requirement? At Swift, we are dedicated to building a workplace where people can bring their full selves and ideas to the team, so if you are excited about this role, we encourage you to apply even if you do not meet every single qualification.