Head of Payments & Regulatory Risk

Starling; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

33 days holiday (including public)

Private Medical Insurance

Pension scheme

Cycle to work

Perkbox membership

Job summary

Starling is seeking an experienced Payments Director to lead our payments function and ensure safe, reliable services in line with regulatory and scheme obligations. You will oversee the Payments team across Technology, Operations, Risk and Compliance, driving risk management and governance.

You will collaborate with technology, risk, suppliers and schemes to strengthen payments capabilities as the bank grows, maintaining a resilient and well-controlled payments environment.

Qualifications

• Experience leading payments teams in banks, fintechs or regulated financial services.
• Strong understanding of payments landscape, risks, and regulatory requirements.
• Ability to translate complex payment issues into clear decisions and outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership and oversight across the Bank’s payments activities.
• Manage payment risks, incidents, and governance with senior stakeholders.
• Oversee relationships with card schemes, networks, and critical third parties.
• Ensure operational resilience and appropriate contingency arrangements for payments services.
• Lead and develop a high-performing payments team.

Skills

Payments leadership

Regulatory compliance

Stakeholder management

Incident management

Operational resilience

Tools

Mastercard ecosystem

Risk governance tools

Job description

Starling is seeking an experienced Payments Director to lead our payments function and ensure safe, reliable services in line with regulatory and scheme obligations. You will oversee the Payments team across Technology, Operations, Risk and Compliance, driving risk management and governance.

You will collaborate with technology, risk, suppliers and schemes to strengthen payments capabilities as the bank grows, maintaining a resilient and well-controlled payments environment.