(Associate) Director, Commercial Risk Strategy

Airwallex (UK) Limited

Job Overview

Location

US - San Francisco

Job Type

Full-time

Full Job Description

📋 Description

• Lead the design and execution of Airwallex’s first-line commercial risk strategy, serving as the primary interface between the Commercial organization, Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), and second/third-line risk and compliance teams.
• Define and manage supportability frameworks that determine which merchant use cases and customer relationships Airwallex will back, ensuring revenue growth is aligned with acceptable risk exposure.
• Serve as the final checkpoint for complex or high-risk commercial deals, providing structured guidance and approval before escalation to second-line risk teams.
• Translate complex second-line risk appetite, policies, and regulatory requirements into clear, actionable commercial playbooks that front-line sales and account management teams can operationalize daily.
• Embed risk ownership into commercial operations by actively participating in major deal reviews, pipeline calls, and quarterly business reviews to ensure risk considerations are integrated into revenue decisions.
• Partner with Revenue Operations and Enablement teams to design and deliver practical training, tools, and resources that equip commercial staff to identify, assess, and mitigate risk in their daily activities.
• Act as the primary point of accountability for commercial conduct risk, identifying misaligned sales incentives or practices and collaborating with Revenue Operations to redesign compensation structures and processes.
• Design and execute a continuous portfolio monitoring framework in partnership with Data and Regional RevOps teams, tracking key metrics such as GP-to-risk ratios, customer risk tiers, fraud/loss rates, and revenue concentration to detect emerging threats.
• Lead structured post-mortems on commercial-induced incidents, driving root-cause analysis and implementing first-line remediation actions to prevent recurrence.
• Enforce second-line risk decisions—including customer offboarding or enhanced monitoring—while representing the commercial risk perspective in internal governance forums, regulatory engagements, and audits.
• Build and scale a high-performing global commercial risk team by recruiting, mentoring, and developing talent to extend risk coverage across regions and business units.
• Balance speed and rigor in decision-making, using data-driven insights and first-principles thinking to navigate high-stakes trade-offs between revenue growth and risk mitigation.
• Leverage AI and advanced analytics to enhance risk detection, automate monitoring processes, and improve the efficiency of commercial risk evaluations.
• Maintain deep alignment with global regulatory and scheme frameworks relevant to B2B fintech, including KYC/AML, sanctions, card network rules, and data privacy standards.
• Champion a culture where every commercial leader views themselves as an owner of Airwallex’s risk profile, fostering accountability and proactive risk management across the organization.

🎯 Requirements

• 10–12 years of risk management experience within financial services, with significant time spent in 1st line or business-aligned roles directly interfacing with front-office or Sales teams.
• Deep expertise in at least two of the following areas: credit and portfolio risk, payments or merchant risk, operational and conduct risk, or enterprise risk.
• Proven track record of designing and implementing practical risk frameworks that materially influence commercial strategy within a Three Lines of Defense (3LoD) model.
• Strong analytical data literacy with the ability to define KPIs, interrogate dashboards, and balance quantitative metrics with qualitative business judgment.
• Exceptional communication skills, with a demonstrated ability to translate complex risk concepts into clear commercial language and navigate tough "risk vs. revenue" discussions with senior stakeholders.
• Experience in high-growth, product-led fintech environments (e.g., payments, issuing, FX, or modern banking).

🏖️ Benefits

• Opportunity to work at a US$8 billion fintech leader with global reach and backing from top-tier investors including Visa, Mastercard, Sequoia, and Salesforce Ventures.
• Collaborative, founder-like culture with accelerated learning, true ownership, and high-impact projects across a team of 2,200+ innovators in 26 offices worldwide.
• Exposure to cutting-edge payments infrastructure and embedded finance solutions used by global enterprises like Brex, Rippling, Navan, and SHEIN.
• Direct reporting line to the Chief Revenue Officer and influence over the global commercial risk function’s design and evolution.
• Access to AI tools and technologies designed to enhance productivity and problem-solving efficiency.
• Equal opportunity employer committed to diversity, inclusion, and merit-based hiring across all dimensions of identity and background.

Skills & Technologies

Junior

Onsite

Degree Required

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Airwallex (UK) Limited

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About Airwallex (UK) Limited

Airwallex is a global financial technology company providing cross-border payment and banking infrastructure for businesses. It offers multi-currency accounts, foreign exchange, card issuing, expense management, and embedded finance APIs. Founded in Melbourne in 2015, the company serves enterprises and SMEs across Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Americas, operating under licenses in multiple jurisdictions and processing billions in annualized transaction volume.

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