UAE Country Manager

Airwallex; Dubai; On-site; AED 450,000 - 750,000; Full time

Job summary

Airwallex seeks a Country Manager for the Middle East to lead the region's commercial, operational and cultural agenda. You will be the most senior Airwallex leader on the ground in the Middle East, building and executing the country strategy, growing the team, and delivering sustainable, cash-flow-positive growth.

You will own the end-to-end GTM, drive partnerships with regulators, and manage a regional P&L while shaping Airwallex's regional brand and government relations.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in financial services, fintech, or tech with leadership in the Middle East

Responsibilities

• Lead SME and Enterprise commercial teams towards KPI achievement across revenue and adoption
• Own end-to-end go-to-market strategy and customer experience for the Middle East
• Define and drive long-term commercial vision for the region with high-growth potential
• Partner with Legal, Risk & Compliance to obtain necessary licensing and regulatory approvals
• Own full P&L responsibility for the Middle East
• Manage regional marketing budget and design sales incentives
• Build brand presence through events, campaigns and partnerships
• Represent Airwallex with regulators and industry bodies
• Build and retain a high-performing regional team
• Ensure alignment with global values and transparent communication

Skills

Leadership

P&L ownership

Regulatory navigation

Strategic thinking

Job description

About Airwallex

Airwallex is the only unified payments and financial platform for global businesses. Powered by our unique combination of proprietary infrastructure and software, we empower over 250,000 businesses worldwide – including Brex, Rippling, Navan, Qantas, SHEIN and many more – with fully integrated solutions to manage everything from business accounts, payments, spend management and treasury, to embedded finance at a global scale.

Proudly founded in Melbourne, we have a team of over 2,300 of the brightest and most innovative people in tech across 27 offices around the globe. Valued at US$11 billion and backed by world-leading investors including T. Rowe Price, Visa, Mastercard, Robinhood Ventures, Sequoia, Salesforce Ventures, DST Global, and Lone Pine Capital, Airwallex is leading the charge in building the global payments and financial platform of the future. If you’re ready to do the most ambitious work of your career, join us.

Attributes We Value

We hire successful builders with founder-like energy who want real impact, accelerated learning, and true ownership. You bring strong role-related expertise and sharp thinking, and you’re motivated by our mission and operating principles. You move fast with good judgment, dig deep with curiosity, and make decisions from first principles, balancing speed and rigor.

You're humble and collaborative; turn zero‑to‑one ideas into real products, and you “get stuff done” end-to-end. You use AI to work smarter and solve problems faster. Here, you’ll tackle complex, high‑visibility problems with exceptional teammates and grow your career as we build the future of global banking. If that sounds like you, let’s build what’s next.

What you’ll do

This is a career-defining opportunity to lead Airwallex's Middle East business. You will be leading the full commercial, operational, and cultural agenda for the region. You will be the most senior Airwallex leader on the ground in the Middle East, responsible for building and executing the country strategy, growing the team, and delivering sustainable, cash-flow-positive growth.

Responsibilities

Commercial Success & Vision

• Lead SME and Enterprise commercial teams towards KPI achievement across revenue, customer acquisition, and product adoption

• Own the end-to‑end go‑to‑market strategy and customer experience for the Middle East

• Define and drive the long‑term commercial vision for the region, identifying emerging segments and verticals with high growth potential

• Partner with the Legal, Risk & Compliance (LRC) team to drive the necessary licensing and regulatory approvals required to operate and expand in the region

• P&L Management

• Own full P&L responsibility for the Middle East, managing commercial contribution margin towards cash‑flow‑positive performance

• Manage and optimise the regional marketing budget in alignment with global priorities

• Design and own commercial team incentive structures within the globally approved framework

• Brand & Corporate Affairs

• Build Airwallex's brand presence and awareness across the Middle East through targeted events, campaigns, and partnerships, in close collaboration with the global marketing team

• Act as a credible external voice with regulators, government bodies, and industry associations, shaping the narrative around Airwallex's regulatory posture and commitment to operating responsibly in the region

• Represent Airwallex at industry forums, regulatory engagements, and speaking opportunities through the corporate affairs function

• People Leadership & Culture

• Build, attract, and retain a high-performing, diverse team across commercial and operational functions in the region

• Own culture and staff engagement for the Middle East office, partnering with the People & Talent team

• Ensure the team is aligned with Airwallex's global values and has regular, clear business updates and context

Who you are

We're looking for people who meet the minimum requirements for this role. The preferred qualifications are great to have, but are not mandatory.

Minimum Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in financial services, fintech, or technology, with significant leadership experience in the Middle East market

• Proven track record of owning a P&L and delivering commercial growth in a high‑growth or scaling business

• Deep understanding of the payments, banking, or cross‑border financial services landscape in the UAE and/or Saudi Arabia

• Demonstrated ability to build and lead high‑performing teams across commercial and operational functions

• Experience navigating regulatory and licensing environments in the region

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience scaling a fintech or payments business in the Middle East from early or greenfield stage — ideally at a Series B–D company building its GCC presence, such as a cross‑border payments, embedded finance, or B2B financial services platform

• Demonstrable track record of personally driving a licensing or regulatory approval with local regulators — not just working alongside compliance teams, but leading senior regulatory engagement through to a milestone outcome

• Prior Country Manager, GM, or equivalent role where they were the most senior person on the ground in the Middle East, operating with limited HQ support and genuine P&L ownership

• Existing relationships within the UAE and KSA fintech and banking ecosystem — regulators, banking partners, enterprise clients, and platform partners

• Experience closing or overseeing significant enterprise commercial deals in the region, ideally in financial services, B2B payments, or SaaS

• Arabic language proficiency a strong advantage; deep cultural fluency in GCC business norms required regardless

• Has stayed long enough in a previous market‑building role to see it through multiple stages of growth — from zero to scaled — demonstrating resilience and follow‑through beyond the initial build phase

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.