Country Compliance Officer (Senegal, Cameroon, Ivory Coast)

About the role

A fintech company that has built a trusted, borderless payment infrastructure is hiring a Country Compliance Officer for Francophone Africa (Senegal, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire). The role oversees and ensures compliance with local regulations for all of the client's products and services, designs regional compliance policies and acts as a subject matter expert on regional regulatory requirements.

Key responsibilities

• Oversee and implement country compliance strategies, policies and procedures in line with global and local regulatory requirements and industry best practice.
• Potentially act as the local Money Laundering Reporting Officer, ensuring suspicious activity is reported to regulators in a timely way.
• Draft and submit regional addendums to compliance policies and procedures, and monitor their effectiveness, escalating risks and recommending improvements.
• Maintain a register of local regulatory requirements and oversee regulatory examinations, coordinating responses and remediation with the Country Compliance Oversight Manager.
• Develop regional compliance reporting for senior management and the board, and track compliance metrics, KPIs and key risk indicators.
• Collaborate with Legal, Risk Management, Operations and other teams, and liaise with central compliance counterparts on financial crime typologies and local trends.
• Assist with recruiting, hiring and training local compliance staff, and escalate staffing needs.

Required profile

• Bachelor's degree in Financial Management, Investment Management, Business Management, Commerce or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in a leadership role overseeing regulatory compliance, with extensive knowledge of BSA/AML, payment processing and digital payment regulations, preferably at a financial institution.
• Strong command of local regulations and enforcement trends.
• Certifications such as CAMS or CFE are highly desirable.

Required skills

• Ability to drive, implement and manage regional policies and procedures.
• Proven track record of managing regulatory compliance functions and improving processes.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
• Effective communication and presentation skills, able to influence stakeholders at all levels.
• Ability to navigate complex regulatory environments and adapt to changing regulations.