Senior Legal Counsel (Interim)

Crown Agents Bank Limited; England; Hybrid; GBP 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working

Job summary

Crown Agents Bank Limited is seeking an Interim Senior Legal Counsel to cover parental leave, reporting to the General Counsel. The role focuses on strategic and complex BAU work across the corporate group and collaborates with Front, Middle and Back Office teams globally.

The ideal candidate is a UK/US/common law qualified solicitor with 8–15 years’ PQE, in-house banking experience, and strong negotiation and drafting skills. Hybrid working and international exposure are expected.

Qualifications

• 5+ years PQE in-house or private practice.
• Experience with wholesale banking products and related risks.
• Experience across licensing, regulatory matters and cross-border deals.
• Ability to operate in fast-paced, ambiguous environments.
• Excellent English communication and drafting skills.

Responsibilities

• Take day-to-day ownership of rollout and provisioning of new banking products.
• Advise on regulatory matters and evolving regulatory landscape across jurisdictions.
• Partner with risk/compliance teams and other business units.
• Structure and implement strategic partnerships and initiatives.
• Lead on legal matters across the wider organisation.
• Provide clear, pragmatic guidance on novel issues.

Skills

Negotiation

Commercial mindset

Clear communication

Adaptability

Problem solving

Legal drafting

Multijurisdictional knowledge

Education

Qualified solicitor in UK/US/common law jurisdictions

Job description

Job Description

SVP providing up to 6 months resource cover for a parental leave within the team. Reporting to the General Counsel, focusing on wide-ranging matters affecting CAB, playing a key role in strategic and complex BAU work across the corporate group.

Role responsibilities

Crown Agents Bank specialises in cross-border payments and FX for hard-to-reach markets. Our mission is to connect hard-to-reach markets to the global economy so money can move where it's needed. Our client base includes some of the world's largest banks, fintechs, NGOs, governments and supranational organisations.

CAB's Legal function is ambitious, agile, curious and purpose-driven. We work closely with the business to become trusted advisors who deliver thoughtful, pragmatic guidance that supports the business in achieving its goals around the world. Our work is meaningful and challenging - from helping some of the world's largest international institutions access critical markets during a crisis, to supporting product rollout in new jurisdictions around the world, no two days are the same.

The Interim Senior Legal Counsel will:

• Take day-to-day ownership of the rollout and provision of new banking products to CAB's global customer base;
• Be a subject matter expert partnering closely with CAB's Front, Middle and Back Office teams, driving forward business initiatives from a legal and regulatory perspective - this doesn't mean always knowing the answers or being an SME on everything, but knowing how to find answers, quickly build an understanding and confidently provide clear and pragmatic guidance on novel issues is crucial;
• Advise on the development of a continually evolving product set, proactively identify associated risks and recommend mitigation strategies to deliver across challenging markets globally;
• Advise on regulatory matters including license and the evolving regulatory landscape across multiple jurisdictions, working closely with the Group's Risk and Compliance teams;
• Partner with the business on the structuring and implementation of strategic partnerships and initiatives, as delegated by the General Counsel;
• Take a lead role in advising on legal matters across the wider organisation.

Qualifications

Qualification

Qualified solicitor in UK, US or a common law jurisdiction.

Experience

• 8-15 years PQE
• Experience in-house in a banking environment with an understanding of wholesale banking products and related risks
• Working knowledge and/or experience working with a wide range of banking products, such as securitisations, trade finance, lending, treasury products, stablecoin and digital assets
• Experience working on legal and regulatory matters across emerging markets is highly desirable
• Experience working on licensing and permissions, CRR analysis, and structuring strategic deals and solutions off the back of this is a plus.

Skills

• Strong negotiation skills, and experience across a range of products, deals and international counterparties
• Commercial mindset - able to see the big picture while protecting the business from key risks
• Capable of communicating complex legal concepts across the business, and proactively communicating with the other members of the legal team
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, changing environment
• Able to tackle novel problems, research and understand new legal issues and products quickly
• Capacity to take ownership of matters, knowing when to take decisions and when to explore
• Creative problem solver who remains calm under pressure and who can effectively prioritise
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment and to tolerate change and ambiguity
• A talent for drafting legal documents in clear and plain English
• An interest in building out functional and operational improvements to the legal team's approach, streamlining interactions between the business and the legal team and seeking to reduce friction and develop processes for self-service where appropriate
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills: excellent English is a necessity; other languages used across many of our markets (such as French, Spanish, Arabic) an asset

Additional Information

Hybrid working