Founding Compliance Lead & MLRO, UAE Regulator Liaison

Pemo; Dubai; On-site; AED 480,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

Pemo, a Dubai-headquartered fintech, seeks a founding compliance leader to build and own the compliance function. You will be the primary contact with the Central Bank of the UAE, running risk assessment, policies, monitoring and reporting day to day, collaborating with Onboarding, Operations, Product, Engineering, Legal and our financial partners.

As the company grows, so will the function and your role, with scope to shape regulatory strategy and drive licensing efforts in a fast-paced,

Qualifications

• 7+ years in compliance or AML/CFT within regulated financial services, fintech or payments.
• Direct experience dealing with the CBUAE, including inspections, licensing or regulatory submissions.
• Strong working knowledge of UAE AML/CFT laws and the CBUAE framework, ideally the Stored Value Facilities and Retail Payment Services regulations.
• A track record of building compliance frameworks, not just running them.
• Clear, practical writing, and the confidence to explain compliance to senior leaders and regulators.
• Eligibility for CBUAE approval as a compliance officer or MLRO.

Responsibilities

• Own the CBUAE relationship, including correspondence, inspections, information requests and supervisory dialogue, and build strong working relationships with the UAE regulatory bodies and our partners.
• Lead the compliance workstream of our CBUAE licensing programme, and keep us audit-ready once we are licensed.
• Execute on our compliance framework, ensuring policies, procedures, controls and a risk-based Compliance Monitoring Programme (CMP) is in place and well executed.
• Run our Enterprise-Wide Risk Assessment (EWRA) and regular compliance reviews, and turn findings into clear, practical fixes.
• Own our AML/CFT programme as MLRO, including CDD and KYB standards, sanctions screening, transaction monitoring and STR filing.
• Track regulatory change, assess its impact on the business, and drive implementation with the right owners.
• Prepare compliance reporting for the CBUAE and updates for senior management and the Board.
• Design smart, tech-led compliance processes, and build compliance into product development, marketing and customer service from the start.

Skills

Regulatory compliance

AML/CFT

Risk management

Regulatory submissions

Policy drafting

Communication

Tools

goAML

Job description

Pemo, a Dubai-headquartered fintech, seeks a founding compliance leader to build and own the compliance function. You will be the primary contact with the Central Bank of the UAE, running risk assessment, policies, monitoring and reporting day to day, collaborating with Onboarding, Operations, Product, Engineering, Legal and our financial partners.

As the company grows, so will the function and your role, with scope to shape regulatory strategy and drive licensing efforts in a fast-paced,