Head of FI and Regulatory Partnerships

Lean’s Financial Institution partnerships team expands and enriches connections between Lean and banks, regulators and other financial institution partners to create a foundation for new and differentiated products that enable people to improve their financial wellbeing. This global team enables innovation for our customers by opening access to tools and technology that were previously reserved for technology upstarts.

About the Job

Lean is looking for an experienced executive leader who will deepen the relationships necessary to advance strategies involving data exchange and bank services with the largest financial institutions in the MENA region. In this role, you will define our strategy for transforming Lean’s position in the industry, cultivate and deepen relationships with key stakeholders, and execute partnership expansion opportunities that drive meaningful impact for both Lean and its partners (including financial institutions).   

The Financial Partnerships team will collaborate closely with many teams across the company including Product, Commercial, Legal, Engineering, Compliance and Marketing. If driving the narrative for how consumer permissioned access to data and payments is good for businesses and people in MENAP is interesting to you, let’s chat!

Who are we

Lean enables companies to seamlessly connect to their users’ bank accounts to initiate real-time payments and retrieve their account information. Our products have garnered the trust of leading companies and enabled them to deliver powerful experiences when connected with a user’s bank account, allowing users to perform prudent financial planning, get better rates on loans, transfer money to friends, and more, without compromising on privacy or security.

Some of Lean’s clients include the likes of Tasheel, Salla, Etisalat Group, Careem, Sarwa, and many more, making it the region’s most valuable Open Banking platform. The company has now processed hundreds of millions of dollars, and its products are also connected with hundreds of thousands of accounts. Lean envisions a fully inclusive financial ecosystem that serves everyone, no matter where they bank or live in the MENAP region.

The Role

• Fostering executive relationships and setting account strategies that expand business relationships across complex, but expanding engagements with financial institutions.

• Partnering and supporting financial institutions in their digital transformation journeys

• Establish partnerships with regulatory bodies that inform our product and commercial roadmap

• Conduct build/buy/partner assessments and inform our M&A or partnership strategy that extends our product suite

• Work with our existing partners to ensure we get the most out of our partnerships

• Finding new and collaborative solutions in a rapidly changing industry that requires a nimble and iterative approach

• Working in a highly collaborative and cross-functional environment where grit and creativity are rewarded

• The ability to flip from strategy to execution constantly, as this role involves both building the team and strategy whilst executing directly on the ground

• Heavy attention to detail and organizational skills

What you'll need

• Strong partner management or business development experience working with financial institutions and/or in the payments industry

• Deep industry experience with the ability to leverage a well-established network with industry executives

• Passion for, and experience in, building relationships with both internal and external stakeholders

• Strong communicators (both verbal and written) with ability to influence executive-level audiences

• A product or operational affinity that enables the creation of solutions with partners

• Professionals who are positive, collaborative, organized and willing to run through walls to get stuff done

• Deep domain knowledge with respect to financial services, open banking, and/or the fintech ecosystem is a plus

NB. While we think the above experience could be important, we’re keen to hear from people that believe they have valuable experience to bring to the role. If you identify with the team and mission, but not all of our requirements, then please still apply!!

Why Join us?

Lean is the first regulated open banking and open finance company operating across the UAE and Saudi Arabia.  Since 2019 we've been on a mission to become the pre-eminent A2A payments company in the Middle East - enabling our clients to seamlessly connect to their users’ bank accounts to initiate real-time payments and retrieve account information. Our products have garnered the trust of some of the leading companies in the region, including the likes of Etisalat Group, Careem, Binance, Tabby, Tamara, Tawuniya, and more.

To date, Lean has processed billions of dollars, and our products have connected with hundreds of thousands of accounts across the region. We've recently announced our $67.5 million Series B funding round led by General Catalyst, following earlier investment from Sequoia Capital. This funding marks a major milestone for Lean and the financial ecosystem across the MENA region. At Lean, we’re committed to driving the next generation of financial innovation by making financial data and payments more accessible and transparent for businesses and consumers alike.

To that end, we're always on the lookout for talented, driven, and entrepreneurial candidates to join us in our mission of enabling the next generation of financial innovation. If you're motivated by solving hard problems and leaving a lasting legacy while you're at it, Lean's where you need to be.

Not only do we offer competitive salaries, private healthcare, and flexible office hours, but we also insist that every member of the team hold a meaningful equity stake in the business to ensure long-term alignment. We'd love you to join us for this journey!

Lean is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

When applying for a job at Lean Technologies, we will need to collect, use and share Personal Data about you with different members of our team during the application process. This may mean transferring your data to members of the team in one of our office locations worldwide outside of the country you are in. Please refer to our Privacy Notice on our website for more information about how we may use and store your Personal Data