Senior Compliance Manager (1st Line of Defence) in London

Our Story Hello there. We’re Zopa. We started our journey back in 2005, building the first ever peer-to-peer lending company. Fast forward to 2020 and we launched Zopa Bank. A bank that listens to what our customers don’t like about finance and does the opposite. We’re redefining what it feels like to work in finance. Our vision for a new era of banking puts people front and centre — we’ve built a business that empowers everyone to aim high, every day, to move finance forward. Find out more about our fantastic offerings at Zopa.com! We’re incredibly proud of our achievements and none of it would be possible without the amazing team here. It’s not just industry awards we’re winning, we’ve also been named in the top three UK’s Most Loved Workplaces. If you embrace unconventional challenges, are unafraid to think differently and are driven to make an outsized impact, you’ll thrive here at Zopa, so join us, and make it count.

The 1st Line of Defence (1LOD) Risk Function is responsible for managing risks across the organisation, working closely with cross-business stakeholders and adopting the bank’s risk framework to embed effective and efficient risk management into everything we do.

We are looking for an experienced Senior Compliance Manager to join our team, partnering across a range of Zopa Bank products including lending, savings, investments and current accounts, while also supporting operational areas such as collections, customer service and customer care where required.

The role is an exciting opportunity for a compliance professional motivated by driving change and contributing to delivering responsible growth and a truly customer-centric experience.

The right person for this role will be pragmatic, have strong compliance technical knowledge, good critical thinking skills and be comfortable operating with a high degree of autonomy. This is a hands-on role requiring you to work closely with the business in a fast-paced environment, finding smart, practical ways to support growth while managing conduct risk effectively.

A day in the life:

• You will report into senior risk leadership and work closely with a range of stakeholders to ensure the business operates within risk appetite through the application of appropriate and proportionate controls.
• You are able to effectively communicate complex regulatory requirements into digestible, practical language for key stakeholders.
• Provide expert, pragmatic regulatory advice and support across products, customer journeys, operational processes and new initiatives.
• Review and advise on financial promotions and broader customer communications, while identifying opportunities to enhance and streamline review processes.
• Act as the compliance subject matter expert on business projects and represent compliance at relevant business committees & forums.
• Lead in defining solutions in response to risks which are i) smart and proportionate, ii) sustainable and iii) considered (i.e. not just plugging a gap but taking a holistic view of the issue at hand and considering what is needed to uplift the risk environment).
• Drive education and awareness of compliance, conduct and regulatory risk management practices across the business.

About you:

• You'll be an experienced compliance professional with a strong understanding of the FCA’s handbook, key regulatory requirements and approach to principles-led regulation consumer credit space. Strong proficiency in COBS, BCOBS, CONC and SYSC is essential. DISP experience is desirable.
• Proven track record of experience in compliance, conduct and regulatory risk within the financial services sector, with the ability to demonstrate strong technical expertise.
• A strong understanding of Consumer Duty and how this underpins regulatory guidance is essential.
• Experienced in leading the design and execution of compliance-led reviews.
• Ability to lead stakeholders to identify areas of risk, support delivery of change and continuously improve existing practices.
• A pragmatic, outcome-oriented approach with the ability to apply the risk framework to deliver optimal outcomes for customers and the business.
• A strong communicator who can articulate issues clearly, flagging trade-offs and solutions in order to balance business objectives with compliance.
• Acts as a trusted source of knowledge and point of contact for colleagues across the business, including first and second line teams.
• Guide first line teams in completing comprehensive risk assessments and promoting a risk-aware culture across the business.

At Zopa we value flexible ways of working. We value face-to-face collaboration and a good work-life balance. This hybrid role requires you to come to our London office 2-3 days a week. You'll also have the option of working from abroad for up to 120 days a year!

Diversity Statement: Zopa is proud to offer a workplace free from discrimination. Diversity of experience, perspectives, and backgrounds leads to better products for our customers and a unique company culture for our people. We are made up of nearly 50 nationalities, have a DE&I forum made up of Zopians wanting to make a difference and we are proud of our culture where everyone can bring their full self to work. Our approach to DE&I is reflected in our hiring process so please let us know if you require any reasonable adjustments.