Lead Digital Assets Supervisor

Financial Conduct Authority; Leeds; On-site; GBP 61,000 - 71,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave 25 days

Pension 8–12%

Private healthcare

Life assurance

Volunteer hours

Flexible benefits

Job summary

Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK seeks a Lead Associate - Regulatory within the Division: Supervision, Policy & Competition (SPC) and Department: Market Interventions – Digital Assets (MIDA). The role focuses on supervising cryptoasset firms and enforcing regulatory standards as FSMA implementation approaches.

The position is based in Leeds/Edinburgh with salary bands £60,700–£70,700 (Edinburgh/Leeds) or £66,600–£77,600 (London), reflecting skills and experience.

Qualifications

• Prior people management experience demonstrating the ability to support, coach and develop those with a range of backgrounds.
• Demonstrable experience of assessing and analysing information including analysing complex information and data, exercising robust, consistent judgements that balance a range of competing factors, and synthesising supervision or investigation strategies.
• Experience of supervision or investigations under the MLRs or Payments Services Regulations/Electronic Money Regulations (PSRs/EMRs), and FSMA

Responsibilities

• Line managing colleagues, including closely managing performance and talent as necessary
• Carefully planning, prioritising, and allocating supervisory work across the team
• Assessing cases of varying complexity, and making sound, consistent, and timely regulatory judgements
• Formulating strategies to deal with complex or novel issues arising domestically or internationally
• Delivering through others, by coaching colleagues in technical knowledge, case strategies, and firm interactions
• Supporting build of the supervisory framework, infrastructure, operating model and processes to allow MIDA and SPC, including specialist supervisors, to effectively supervise crypto firms under the future regulatory regime
• Work with firms to ensure they can meet full new FSMA requirements by 25 October 2027 (implementation date)
• Establishing and maintaining effective relationships with a wide range of internal stakeholders, including financial crime specialists, legal advisors, Authorisations, Intelligence, Enforcement and Policy teams

Skills

People management

Regulatory judgement

Data analysis

FSMA familiarity

Regulatory supervision

Job description

Division: Supervision, Policy & Competition (SPC)

Department: Market Interventions – Digital Assets (MIDA)

• Salary: National (Edinburgh and Leeds) ranging from £60,700 to £70,700 and London from £66,600 to £77,600 (salary offered will be based on skills and experience)
• This role is graded as: Lead Associate - Regulatory

About The FCA And Team

We regulate financial services firms in the UK, to keep financial markets fair, thriving and effective. By joining us, you’ll play a key part in protecting consumers, driving economic growth, and shaping the future of UK financial services.

SPC oversees firms and individuals (supervision), creates and reviews the rules by which they operate (policy) and identifies and remedies ineffective competition in markets (competition). Sitting in the Payments and Digital Assets directorate, the Market Intervention department supervises and enforces regulatory standards in cryptoasset firms, and other firms with crypto‑adjacent business models.

We are operating in a particularly interesting period of cryptoasset regulation which will bring all firms conducting qualifying activity in the UK within the FCA’s regulatory perimeter. The new rules will require firms to implement full Financial Services & Markets Act (FSMA) requirements to ensure high standards of conduct, prudential management and market integrity. Significant work is underway to help ensure that FCA is ready for this transition, and can deliver the necessary functions in Authorisations, Supervision and Policy to make it a success.

Role Responsibilities

Our Registered team are responsible for supervising firms’ compliance with the Money Laundering Regulations (MLRs). The team identify, manage, and mitigate risks of potential harm arising in firms, including rapidly intervening where firms are at risk of being used as conduits for illegal activity, or pose a harm to consumers or market integrity. The team has a key role to play in ensuring the effective embedding of the new regime both internally and externally. In the future, we will be supervising firms’ compliance under FSMA.

• Line managing colleagues, including closely managing performance and talent as necessary
• Carefully planning, prioritising, and allocating supervisory work across the team
• Assessing cases of varying complexity, and making sound, consistent, and timely regulatory judgements
• Formulating strategies to deal with complex or novel issues arising domestically or internationally
• Delivering through others, by coaching colleagues in technical knowledge, case strategies, and firm interactions
• Supporting build of the supervisory framework, infrastructure, operating model and processes to allow MIDA and SPC, including specialist supervisors, to effectively supervise crypto firms under the future regulatory regime
• Work with firms to ensure they can meet full new FSMA requirements by 25 October 2027 (implementation date)
• Establishing and maintaining effective relationships with a wide range of internal stakeholders, including financial crime specialists, legal advisors, Authorisations, Intelligence, Enforcement and Policy teams

Skills Required

• Prior people management experience demonstrating the ability to support, coach and develop those with a range of backgrounds
• Demonstrable experience of assessing and analysing information including analysing complex information and data, exercising robust, consistent judgements that balance a range of competing factors, and synthesising supervision or investigation strategies
• Experience of supervision or investigations under the MLRs or Payments Services Regulations/Electronic Money Regulations (PSRs/EMRs), and FSMA

Essential

• A motivated individual who combines structure with careful judgment to reach decisions
• Experience of prioritising the workload of a team, managing your time effectively and using sound judgement to deliver results in a high-case volume environment
• Demonstrated sense of accountability, demonstrating ownership of problems and implementing pragmatic action‑based solutions
• Familiarity with the range of firms across the Digital Assets sector including business models, key products, schemes, systems, and the roles played by various firms and institutions
• Demonstrated ability to balance competing priorities and operate effectively when priorities shift frequently
• Ability to represent yourself and the FCA professionally and credibly, with effective oral and presentation skills
• Experience in managing challenging firms, supporting them through the regulatory process, and maintaining clear standards to deliver positive regulatory outcomes
• Experienced in mentoring peers and providing dependable support to others

Benefits

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Colleagues spend a minimum of 50% of their working time in the office each month (60% for Directors and Executive Directors) across our London, Leeds and Edinburgh offices
• Non-contributory pension (8–12% depending on age) and life assurance at eight times your salary
• Private healthcare with Bupa, income protection, and 24/7 Employee Assistance
• 35 hours of paid volunteering annually
• A flexible benefits scheme designed around your lifestyle

Our Values & Culture

Our colleagues are the key to our success as a regulator. We are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture: one that’s free from discrimination and bias, celebrates difference, and supports colleagues to deliver at their best. We believe that our differences and similarities enable us to be a better organisation – one that makes better decisions, drives innovation, and delivers better regulation.

If you require any adjustments due to a disability or condition, your recruiter is here to help - reach out for tailored support.

We welcome diverse working styles and aim to find flexible solutions that suit both the role and individual needs, including options like part‑time and job sharing where applicable.

Disability Confident: Our Hiring Approach

We’re proud to be a Disability Confident Employer, and therefore, people or individuals with disabilities and long-term conditions who best meet the minimum criteria for a role will go through to the next stage of the recruitment process. In cases of high application volumes we may progress applicants whose experience most closely matches the role’s key requirements.

Useful Information and Timeline

• Job advert closes: Sunday 8th November (midnight)
• CV Review/Shortlist: Tuesday 10th November
• Interviews: From w/c 16th November