Compliance Director, High-Risk

Finix; San Francisco (CA); Remote; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Finix is seeking a Compliance Director to lead high‑risk regulatory programs across gaming, nutraceuticals, CBD, and digital products. You will partner with Sales, Partnerships and Underwriting to shape underwriting standards and practical guidance while keeping within laws, network rules, and sponsor bank requirements.

Based in San Francisco or remotely, you will develop policies, playbooks and escalation paths, translate complex rules into actionable guidance for Product, Tech and Operations,

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in compliance, risk, or regulatory roles within payments, fintech, banking, or similar regulated environments.
• Hands-on experience with merchant underwriting and onboarding, including KYC/KYB and risk-based approval frameworks.
• Experience with high-risk merchant verticals such as gaming and gambling, nutraceuticals, CBD, or similar, and with the card network and sponsor bank requirements that apply to them.
• Proven ability to interpret regulatory and card network requirements and apply them to real merchants, products, and business models.
• Strong understanding of risk management and controls, and of sponsor bank oversight expectations.
• Experience working directly with sales, business development, or product teams on deals and new market entry.
• Experience drafting policies, procedures, and guides that business teams actually use.
• Experience leading complex, cross-functional work with multiple dependencies and senior stakeholders.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication, with the ability to turn ambiguity into clear plans, trade-offs, and decisions.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint (or Google equivalents).

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary compliance partner to Sales, Partnerships, and Underwriting, giving fast, practical, well-documented guidance on prospects and deals.
• Lead compliance strategy for our gaming and gambling vertical, including iGaming, sports wagering, sweepstakes, and predictive markets, with state-by-state and provincial regulatory analysis, licensing and registration requirements, and merchant and vendor eligibility standards.
• Develop and maintain underwriting standards, risk-tiering, approval gates, and escalation paths for high-risk sectors such as nutraceuticals, wellness, CBD, and digital products and services, so that low-risk applicants move quickly and higher-risk applicants receive appropriate scrutiny.
• Lead compliance evaluation of new sectors, business models, and structures (e.g., ISV, marketplace, and merchant-of-record models), performing market and regulatory research and setting minimum requirements before launch.
• Write and maintain procedures, onboarding guides, and underwriting playbooks for high-risk and restricted verticals.
• Translate laws, card network rules, and sponsor bank requirements into clear guidance for Product, Sales, Technology, and Operations teams.
• Work closely with Payment Operations, including Underwriting and Partnerships, to streamline onboarding workflows and remove bottlenecks without weakening controls.
• Guide and develop the Compliance Operations team through coaching, review of work product, and clear standards for quality and documentation.
• Support sponsor bank and network relationships on onboarding and sector-related matters, including approvals, due diligence requests, and program reviews.
• Support the AML/BSA, sanctions, and fraud programs from the business side, including KYC/KYB standards and escalation of risk signals from onboarding and monitoring.
• Contribute to audit and regulatory exam readiness, policy and procedure updates, and remediation of findings tied to onboarding and merchant risk.
• Monitor regulatory and network rule changes (US, Canada, state and provincial) that affect target sectors and update guidance accordingly, working with external counsel where appropriate.
• Prepare clear, decision‑ready summaries for senior management, sponsor banks, and partners

Skills

Compliance

Risk management

Regulatory analysis

KYC/KYB

Underwriting

Cross-functional collaboration

Policy drafting

Communication

Project management

Mentoring/coaching

Education

Juris Doctor

CAMS

CFE

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

About Finix

Finix is building the global operating system for fintech, starting with payments. From startups to publicly traded companies, Finix processes tens of billions of dollars annually both in-store and online. Finix was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in San Francisco.

To date Finix has raised over $200M, including a $75M Series C led by Acrew Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners and backed by American Express Ventures, Bain Capital Ventures, Homebrew, Inspired Capital, Visa, and others

About the Role:

Finix is hiring a Compliance Director to be the compliance partner to our business teams on the front end: new merchants, new partners, and new sectors. This role will report to our Head of Compliance & Regulatory Counsel and will work side by side with Sales, Partnerships, Underwriting, and Payment Operations to bring on new business quickly and with a growth mindset, while always staying within applicable law, card network rules, and sponsor bank requirements. The initial focus will be gaming and gambling, followed by the other high‑risk sectors we support, such as nutraceuticals, wellness, CBD, and digital products and services. You will shape underwriting standards, build the procedures and guides that make these sectors workable, and give business teams clear, timely answers on what we can do, under what conditions, and what we can’t. You will also support the Head of Compliance in guiding and developing our Compliance Operations team.

You Will:

• Serve as the primary compliance partner to Sales, Partnerships, and Underwriting, giving fast, practical, well-documented guidance on prospects and deals
• Lead compliance strategy for our gaming and gambling vertical, including iGaming, sports wagering, sweepstakes, and predictive markets, with state-by-state and provincial regulatory analysis, licensing and registration requirements, and merchant and vendor eligibility standards
• Develop and maintain underwriting standards, risk-tiering, approval gates, and escalation paths for high-risk sectors suc as nutraceuticals, wellness, CBD, and digital products and services, so that low-risk applicants move quickly and higher-risk applicants receive appropriate scrutiny
• Lead compliance evaluation of new sectors, business models, and structures (e.g., ISV, marketplace, and merchant-of-record models), performing market and regulatory research and setting minimum requirements before launch
• Write and maintain procedures, onboarding guides, and underwriting playbooks for high-risk and restricted verticals
• Translate laws, card network rules, and sponsor bank requirements into clear guidance for Product, Sales, Technology, and Operations teams
• Work closely with Payment Operations, including Underwriting and Partnerships, to streamline onboarding workflows and remove bottlenecks without weakening controls
• Guide and develop the Compliance Operations team through coaching, review of work product, and clear standards for quality and documentation
• Support sponsor bank and network relationships on onboarding and sector-related matters, including approvals, due diligence requests, and program reviews
• Support the AML/BSA, sanctions, and fraud programs from the business side, including KYC/KYB standards and escalation of risk signals from onboarding and monitoring
• Contribute to audit and regulatory exam readiness, policy and procedure updates, and remediation of findings tied to onboarding and merchant risk
• Monitor regulatory and network rule changes (US, Canada, state and provincial) that affect target sectors and update guidance accordingly, working with external counsel where appropriate
• Prepare clear, decision‑ready summaries for senior management, sponsor banks, and partners

You Have:

• 7+ years of experience in compliance, risk, or regulatory roles within payments, fintech, banking, or similar regulated environments
• Hands‑on experience with merchant underwriting and onboarding, including KYC/KYB and risk‑based approval frameworks
• Experience with high-risk merchant verticals such as gaming and gambling, nutraceuticals, CBD, or similar, and with the card network and sponsor bank requirements that apply to them
• Proven ability to interpret regulatory and card network requirements and apply them to real merchants, products, and business models
• Strong understanding of risk management and controls, and of sponsor bank oversight expectations
• Experience working directly with sales, business development, or product teams on deals and new market entry
• Experience drafting policies, procedures, and guides that business teams actually use
• Experience leading complex, cross-functional work with multiple dependencies and senior stakeholders
• Exceptional written and verbal communication, with the ability to turn ambiguity into clear plans, trade-offs, and decisions
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint (or Google equivalents)

You Are:

• Business‑minded and solutions‑oriented: you find the compliant path to yes and are clear and firm when the answer must be no
• Comfortable with ambiguity: you operate effectively in new sectors where the rules are unsettled
• Proactive: you don’t wait to be asked; you identify what needs to happen and make it happen
• Detail‑oriented: you catch the small things others miss because you know they matter
• Collaborative: you build relationships easily and know great compliance work requires cross-functional partnership
• A natural coach: you raise the quality of the people and teams around you without needing a title over them

Nice to Have:

• Juris Doctor or law degree, with bar admission in good standing
• Experience with gaming and gambling regulation, including state licensing, vendor registration, and eSweepstakes or similar emerging frameworks
• Familiarity with U.S. frameworks (FinCEN, state money transmission, CCPA) and Canadian frameworks (FINTRAC, RPAA, PIPEDA, Quebec Law 25)
• Experience with payment networks (Visa, Mastercard, Interac, Discover) and sponsor banks
• Knowledge of the fintech‑bank partnership model and bank third‑party risk expectations
• Experience at a card network, processor, acquirer, or sponsor bank
• Certifications such as CAMS or CFE
• Prior experience supporting a BSA Officer, CAMLO, or compliance leadership

Finix is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status, or any other protected class.

Role: Compliance Director, High Risk

Level: IC4 - IC5

Location: San Francisco or Remote

Base Salary Range: $140,000 - $210,000/yr + Equity + Benefits

Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on this job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire (remote) salaries. Individual pay is determined by work location, job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.