Manager, Internal Audit

Airwallex Pty Ltd.; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 220,000 - 320,000; Full time

Job summary

Airwallex is seeking a seasoned internal audit leader to establish and run the UAE function, driving regulatory readiness and robust controls across the UAE, EMEA, and international footprint. You will serve as a key regulator-facing function, shaping risk assessments and audit plans while collaborating with the local Board.

You will communicate complex compliance issues to senior stakeholders, lead audits of financial crime controls, and drive timely remediation actions across multiple

Qualifications

• 8+ years of audit experience, able to step into regulatory Key Function Holder role.
• Deep knowledge of UAE regulatory frameworks (CB UAE, DFSA, FSRA).
• Experience auditing financial crime, AML/CFT, sanctions screening, payment systems, or enterprise risk.
• Experience developing risk-based audit plans and evaluating controls.
• Strong ability to communicate risks and audit findings to senior stakeholders and regulators.
• Excellent written and spoken English; degree in Accounting/Finance or related field.

Responsibilities

• Establish and lead the UAE internal audit function and act as Key Function Holder.
• Design and execute risk-based audit plans, charters and testing procedures for UAE.
• Lead regulatory compliance audits across EMEA and contribute to global audits.
• Assess design and operating effectiveness of controls across financial crime and related domains.
• Use data analytics to improve audit efficiency and continuous monitoring.
• Communicate complex issues to senior management, Boards and regulators.
• Track management action plans and ensure timely remediation.
• Stay updated on UAE and EMEA regulatory developments and embed best practices.

Skills

Audit leadership

Regulatory knowledge

Financial crime auditing

Stakeholder comms

English fluency

Education

Bachelor's degree in Accounting/Finance

Tools

Python

SQL

Databricks

Looker

Job description

About Airwallex

Airwallex is the AI-native financial operating system for a real-time, intelligent economy. More than 675,000 businesses, including McLaren Racing, Qantas, SHEIN, and TikTok, use us, directly or through our platform partners, to run their financial operations or build and monetize financial products of their own.

We started in Melbourne in 2015 to build the infrastructure global commerce runs on. We're the regulated backbone behind global payments: not by accident, but by design. A decade plus, 85+ licenses, and a financial infrastructure spanning North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.

We're co-headquartered in San Francisco and Singapore, with more than 2,700 people across 27 offices. We hire builders with founder-level energy, people who move fast with good judgment, dig in with real curiosity, and make calls from first principles rather than waiting to be told what to do. Read our operating principles to see it in full.

How you'll make impact

You'll establish and lead the internal audit function for Airwallex's UAE entity, meeting local regulatory expectations while supporting the entity's growth. You'll work across the UAE, EMEA and Airwallex's international footprint to strengthen assurance, controls and regulatory readiness.

• Establish and lead the internal audit function for Airwallex's UAE entity, meeting local regulatory expectations and supporting the entity's growth.
• Serve as the designated Chief Internal Auditor / Head of Internal Audit and Key Function Holder for the UAE entity, partnering with the local Board and relevant regulators.
• Design and execute risk-based audit plans, charters and testing procedures tailored to the UAE regulatory environment and Airwallex's local risk profile.
• Lead regulatory compliance audits across the EMEA region and contribute to global compliance audits across Airwallex's international footprint.
• Assess the design and operating effectiveness of controls across financial crime, AML/CFT, sanctions screening, payment systems, card schemes, customer money safeguarding and enterprise risk management.
• Use data analytics and technology to improve audit efficiency, support continuous monitoring and identify emerging risks or anomalies.
• Communicate complex compliance issues clearly to senior management, business leaders, risk teams, Boards and regulators.
• Track management action plans and follow up to ensure audit findings are remediated in a timely and sustainable way.
• Stay close to regulatory developments across the UAE and broader EMEA region, embedding relevant changes and best practices into Airwallex's audit approach.

You'll work from our Dubai or Abu Dhabi office three days a week.

What we're looking for

Essentials

• 8+ years of audit experience, with proven capability to step into a regulatory Key Function Holder role.
• Deep knowledge of regulatory compliance requirements in the UAE, including relevant CBUAE, DFSA or FSRA frameworks.
• Experience auditing financial crime, AML/CFT, sanctions screening, payment systems, card schemes, customer money safeguarding or enterprise risk management.
• Experience developing and executing risk-based audit plans and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of controls.
• Experience communicating complex risks and audit findings clearly to senior stakeholders, Boards and regulators.
• Strong written and spoken English, with the ability to influence stakeholders across functions and levels.
• A bachelor's degree or above in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration or a related field.
• Current UAE residency with valid work authorisation, or eligibility for UAE employment visa sponsorship and willingness to relocate to meet applicable regulatory presence requirements.

Preferred

• Fluency in Arabic.
• Professional audit qualifications such as CIA, CPA, CAMS, CISA or FRM.
• Hands-on experience with data analysis tools such as Python, Databricks, Looker or SQL.
• Experience using AI-driven audit methodologies or building automated monitoring routines.
• Experience working in a high-growth, international fintech or other highly regulated business.

You’ll thrive here if

• You're comfortable owning the roadmap yourself.
• You hold yourself to a high standard even when no one is watching. Quality and accountability aren't external expectations, they're internal ones.
• You're comfortable with ambiguity. Give you a problem, not a prescription, and you'll run with it.
• You've operated in a compliance-heavy environment and know how to move fast without cutting the corners that matter.
• You enjoy working closely with people across multiple countries and time zones as part of one connected, global team, including flexing your hours occasionally to make that connection work.
• You connect dots across functions and hold the big picture without losing grip on the details.
• You say what you mean. You're direct, but you lead with respect.

Learn more about your team

Internal Audit reviews how our business operates end to end, identifying risks, surfacing gaps, and uncovering opportunities to build stronger controls. It's a function for people with the highest standards and sharp judgment who want their work to have real influence, not just flagging issues, but helping shape a more resilient business as Airwallex grows. If you want to do rigorous work with high visibility and help raise the bar on how global fintech scales, this is the place to do it.

Equal opportunity

Airwallex is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity and anyone seeking employment at Airwallex is considered based on merit, qualifications, competence and talent. We don’t regard color, religion, race, national origin, sexual orientation, ancestry, citizenship, sex, marital or family status, disability, gender, or any other legally protected status when making our hiring decisions. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.