Senior Associate / Associate, Portfolio Risk, GCC Pension Fund (Role Based in GCC)

JR United Kingdom; Gloucester; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent GCC-based Pension Fund is seeking a Senior Associate/Associate to join their Portfolio Risk team. The role involves assessing investment risks across diverse asset classes and ensuring alignment with long-term goals and regulations. Candidates should have 5-10 years of relevant experience and strong analytical skills. This position offers a stimulating environment to contribute to risk management and portfolio analysis.

Qualifications

• 5-10 years of experience in investment risk or portfolio analytics.
• Proficiency in risk platforms and programming.
• Familiarity with Islamic finance is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Monitor portfolio exposures and assess market risks.
• Develop and maintain risk dashboards for leadership.
• Support compliance with risk limits and regulations.

Skills

Analytical abilities

Quantitative skills

Programming (Python, R)

Risk analysis

Data analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance

Master's degree in Economics

Professional certifications (FRM, CFA)

Tools

Bloomberg PORT

RiskMetrics

Barra

Excel VBA

SQL

Job description

Background:

Our client, a prominent GCC-based Pension Fund, is seeking an experienced investment professional to join their Portfolio Risk team. As a Senior Associate / Associate, you will assess and monitor investment risks across a diversified portfolio. The role plays a vital part in aligning investments with the fund’s long-term goals and regulatory requirements.

Key Responsibilities:

• Monitor portfolio exposures and assess market, credit, and liquidity risks across asset classes.
• Perform quantitative risk analysis using VaR, stress testing, and scenario analysis.
• Develop and maintain risk dashboards, alerts, and reports for leadership and committees.
• Support implementation and refinement of risk frameworks, policies, and controls.
• Ensure compliance with risk limits, governance, and regulations.
• Collaborate with teams to evaluate risk-return profiles of investment strategies.
• Analyze portfolio sensitivity to economic, interest rate, currency, and geopolitical factors.
• Contribute to model development, back testing, and validation.
• Communicate key risk insights to stakeholders.

Qualifications & Experience:

• 5 – 10 years experience in investment risk, portfolio analytics, or financial risk management— preferably within pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, or asset managers.
• Strong analytical and quantitative abilities with proficiency in risk platforms such as Bloomberg PORT, RiskMetrics, or Barra.
• Solid programming and data analysis capabilities (e.g., Python, R, Excel VBA, SQL).
• Familiarity with asset allocation models, risk-adjusted performance metrics, and portfolio construction principles.
• Understanding of Islamic finance is a plus, particularly for Sukuk and Sharia-compliant investment structures.
• Knowledge of regional and international pension fund regulatory frameworks, including capital adequacy requirements.
• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Finance, Economics, Risk Management, Actuarial Science, or a quantitative discipline such as Mathematics, Statistics, or Engineering.
• Professional certifications preferred: FRM, CFA, or PRM (or currently pursuing one).