Head of Credit Risk

Morgan McKinley; Sydney; On-site; AUD 230,000 - 360,000; Full time

Job summary

Morgan McKinley in Sydney, Australia, seeks a Head of Credit and Risk to own the end-to-end merchant credit lifecycle, including onboarding, underwriting, portfolio monitoring and loss mitigation, in a high-growth fintech environment.

Reporting to the CEO, this leadership role balances rigorous credit judgement with commercial growth, mentoring a team across risk, operations, and finance while collaborating with sales and product teams.

Qualifications

• Industry & risk leadership experience in merchant acquiring, payments, business banking or fintech.
• Financial analysis of statements, trading models and contingent liabilities for complex SMEs.
• Knowledge of merchant acquiring lifecycles, card-scheme rules, disputes and AML/KYC onboarding controls.
• Experience with risk in high-risk sectors (e.g., travel) and exposure mitigation techniques.
• Pragmatic leadership with willingness to coach a team while staying hands-on.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end merchant credit assessment framework and governance.
• Oversee merchant onboarding, AML/KYC and due diligence processes.
• Monitor portfolio and implement early warning, remediation, and loss mitigation strategies.
• Develop sector-specific credit propositions to mitigate exposures in high-risk segments.
• Manage disputes, controls and lead the Credit & Risk team.

Skills

Credit underwriting

Risk leadership

Portfolio monitoring

AML/KYC operations

Job description

Join an established, high-growth Australian-headquartered fintech fintech specializing in tailored payment solutions for complex and high-risk commercial sectors in this newly created Head of Credit and Risk role. This unique opportunity allows you to be a trusted advisor, providing essential guidance, support, and challenge across a variety of areas within the business.

Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer, you will take full operational accountability for the end-to-end merchant credit and risk lifecycle. This leadership role is responsible for striking the balance between driving sustainable commercial growth and applying rigorous credit judgement, managing everything from onboarding due diligence and tailored underwriting to ongoing portfolio monitoring, dispute management, and loss mitigation.

Responsibilities

• Credit Underwriting & Governance: Lead the end-to-end merchant credit assessment framework, establishing sound underwriting policies, delegated authorities, and proportionate risk mitigants (such as security reserves, settlement delays, and exposure limits) for SME and mid-market merchants.
• Onboarding & AML/KYC Operations: Oversee robust, auditable merchant onboarding processes, ensuring thorough customer identification, beneficial ownership verification, enhanced due diligence, and compliance with anti-money laundering regulations.
• Portfolio & Problem Credit Management: Direct ongoing portfolio monitoring and early-warning mechanisms to detect deteriorating merchant performance, executing decisive remediation, exposure reduction, and distressed credit recovery strategies.
• High-Risk & Sector-Specific Propositions: Develop specialised credit and risk propositions tailored to complex, high-risk sectors (such as travel), effectively mitigating exposures related to advance payments, forward delivery, supplier insolvencies, and seasonality.
• Disputes, Controls & Team Leadership: Manage operational chargeback and dispute resolution within scheme rules, maintain audit-ready internal controls, and lead, mentor, and develop the Credit & Risk operations team.

Requirements

• Industry & Risk Expertise: Substantial hands-on credit underwriting and operational risk leadership experience gained within merchant acquiring, payments, business banking, or fintech.
• Financial & Exposure Analysis: Proven competence in assessing commercial financial statements, trading models, and contingent settlement liabilities, particularly for complex SMEs and mid-sized enterprises.
• Regulatory & Scheme Knowledge: Strong working knowledge of merchant acquiring lifecycles, card-scheme risk rules, dispute and chargeback mechanisms, and AML/KYC onboarding controls.
• High-Risk Sector Exposure: Practical understanding of forward-delivery exposure, deferred settlement structures, and risk mitigation techniques - prior experience within travel payments or volatile merchant sectors is highly advantageous.
• Pragmatic Leadership: Confident decision-making capabilities, commercial acumen, and the willingness to remain operationally hands-on while coaching a team in a fast-paced environment.

You must hold full Australian working rights.