Head of Payments

At Finyard, we're a global team of engineers, data scientists, marketeers, and financial experts, passionate about technology and innovation. We're all about bringing revolutionary software services to people all around the world, and have been since 2018.

Our mission is to innovate by launching modern software solutions in the FinTech space, giving users around the world simpler and quicker ways to transact and manage their investments. We are committed to ensuring every product we release is in service of our users, so that as we grow, so do they.

Role Overview

On behalf of our client we are looking for the Head of Payments who will be responsible for the strategy, leadership, and management of the entire payments function, ensuring secure, efficient, and scalable payment operations with focus on CFD. This role covers payment processing, settlement, reconciliation, product development, risk/anti-fraud management, and strategic partnerships. The Head of Payments will take full ownership of the payments ecosystem, driving innovation, operational excellence, and compliance while maximizing approval rates, minimizing costs, and enhancing customer satisfaction.

Key Responsibilities:

Payment Operations

• Oversee daily and periodic payment processing, payouts, refunds, and exception handling.
• Monitor payment gateways for transaction success, failures, and risk signals.
• Ensure liquidity, balances, and settlements are effectively managed for smooth operations.
• Develop and optimize reconciliation and reporting processes. 
• Collaborate with the Client Success team to solve payment issues.

Team Leadership

• Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing Payments team.
• Define responsibilities, set KPIs, and track performance.
• Foster a culture of accountability, accuracy, and continuous improvement.

PSP & Gateway Management

• Serve as the primary contact for PSPs, acquirers, APMs, and banking partners.
• Negotiate and monitor partnership terms, SLAs, and commercials.
• Ensure PSPs and gateways meet operational and compliance requirements.
• Resolve issues related to downtime, failed transactions, or performance gaps.

Risk/Anti-fraud Management

• Ensure payment operations comply with internal policies and regulatory requirements (AML, KYC, PSD2, GDPR, data protection).
• Identify, assess, and mitigate risks related to payment fraud, chargebacks, FX fluctuations, and system vulnerabilities.
• Lead internal and external audits, and implement proactive risk controls.
• Develop and oversee chargeback mitigation and fraud detection strategies.

Payment Product Development

• Define the vision, roadmap, and strategy for payment products in alignment with business goals and priorities. 
• Conduct market research, competitor analysis, and user research to identify trends and opportunities.
• Oversee the entire product lifecycle: planning, launch, and continuous optimization.
• Manage payment flow UX/UI optimization.
• Overview technical integration process of new payments implementations, internal Backoffice optimization.
• Collaborate with engineering, BI, design, and marketing teams to deliver seamless, compliant, and high-conversion payment solutions.

Process Improvement & Automation

• Identify bottlenecks in payment processes and drive automation initiatives.
• Implement scalable solutions to improve transaction success rates, cost efficiency, and customer experience.
• Build real-time dashboards, reporting systems, and PCI-compliant payment pages.

Key Deliverables

• Build & Expand: Develop a global payment network by onboarding top PSPs, APMs, and banking partners.
• Optimize Payment Flows: Improve approval rates by managing MID performance, 3DS logic, cascading rules, and MCC setup.
• Enhance Settlement & Payouts: Secure competitive FX rates, minimize fees, and streamline reconciliation.
• Reduce Risk: Implement fraud prevention, and chargeback mitigation for high-spending users.
• Create Powerful Reporting: Deliver advanced reporting and BI dashboards for payment performance and compliance.

Candidate Profile

• Proven experience in senior payments leadership roles.
• Strong knowledge of global payment systems, PSPs, acquiring banks, and alternative payment methods.
• Good understanding of product architecture, API structure
• Expertise in compliance, AML/KYC, fraud prevention, and regulatory frameworks.
• Demonstrated ability to build and scale payment operations, teams, and partner networks.
• Excellent negotiation and stakeholder management skills with PSPs, banks, and regulators.
• Analytical, data-driven mindset with ability to translate insights into business value.
• Comfortable working in a high-growth, multi-market environment with evolving product lines.