Head of Payment Operations, PayPal Bank

PayPal; California; On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

PayPal Bank is forming and seeks a Head of Payment Operations to lead end-to-end payment operations, including card acquiring settlement, ACH processing, deposit operations, loan funding, and settlement reconciliation. Reporting to the COO, you will design a safe, scalable framework aligned with the business plan and regulatory expectations.

You will manage staff, coordinate with regulators, networks and risk teams, and drive operations governance, control, and reporting for FDIC-supervised

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 10+ years in payment operations, banking operations, or financial services.
• 5+ years in a senior management role overseeing operational teams and first-line controls.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage all payment and settlement operations for the Bank, including card acquiring settlement, ACH processing, and loan servicing.
• Oversee coordination with Credit, ensuring operational accuracy and segregation of duties.
• Establish settlement, reconciliation, general ledger control, dispute and exception management processes.
• Own the first-line operational risk and control environment for payment and deposit activities.
• Ensure adherence to applicable laws, regulations and network requirements (NACHA, FDIC, Regulation E where applicable).
• Develop and monitor KPIs and report material issues to COO and governance committees.
• Lead governance and reporting to support regulatory examinations and oversight.

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, economics, Accounting, or related discipline

10+ years progression in payment operations or financial services

5+ years in senior management / director-level leadership

Job description

The Company

PayPal has been revolutionizing commerce globally for more than 25 years. Creating innovative experiences that make moving money, selling, and shopping simple, personalized, and secure, PayPal empowers consumers and businesses in approximately 200 markets to join and thrive in the global economy.

We operate a global, two-sided network at scale that connects hundreds of millions of merchants and consumers. We help merchants and consumers connect, transact, and complete payments, whether they are online or in person. PayPal is more than a connection to third-party payment networks. We provide proprietary payment solutions accepted by merchants that enable the completion of payments on our platform on behalf of our customers.

We offer our customers the flexibility to use their accounts to purchase and receive payments for goods and services, as well as the ability to transfer and withdraw funds. We enable consumers to exchange funds more safely with merchants using a variety of funding sources, which may include a bank account, a PayPal or Venmo account balance, PayPal and Venmo branded credit products, a credit card, a debit card, certain cryptocurrencies, or other stored value products such as gift cards, and eligible credit card rewards. Our PayPal, Venmo, and Xoom products also make it safer and simpler for friends and family to transfer funds to each other. We offer merchants an end-to-end payments solution that provides authorization and settlement capabilities, as well as instant access to funds and payouts. We also help merchants connect with their customers, process exchanges and returns, and manage risk. We enable consumers to engage in cross-border shopping and merchants to extend their global reach while reducing the complexity and friction involved in enabling cross-border trade.

Our beliefs are the foundation for how we conduct business every day. We live each day guided by our core values of Inclusion, Innovation, Collaboration, and Wellness. Together, our values ensure that we work together as one global team with our customers at the center of everything we do – and they push us to ensure we take care of ourselves, each other, and our communities.

Job Summary:

The Head of Payment Operations, PayPal Bank leads the end-to-end payment operations function for PayPal Bank (in formation), including card acquiring settlement, ACH processing, deposit operations (retail, business and FBO), loan funding, payment posting, reconciliation, dispute and error resolution, and first-line operational risk controls. Reporting to the Chief Operations Officer, the role will design and manage a safe, sound and scalable framework aligned with the Bank’s Business Plan, including acquiring services, savings deposit operations and deposit funding, liquidity and settlement execution in partnership with Treasury. The role is accountable for operational execution, controls, governance and reporting suitable for FDIC-supervised operations and adherence to applicable laws, regulations and network requirements. The role leads payment operations staff and serves as a key operational interface with regulators, networks, audit, risk management and affiliate service providers.

Job Description:

Essential Responsibilities:

• Provide clear focused strategy and business priorities for your organization.
• Establish global relationships throughout the organization to ensure excellent information flow and feedback on impacts of process, policy, and product changes.
• Liaise with peers in other parts of the organization to align strategy and meet common goals.
• lead global programs of work beyond the core functional deliverables to drive process improvement and alignment, employee engagement, and leadership initiatives in global financial crimes and consumer protections and across Risk Management.
• Maintain a high level of subject matter expertise to coach, guide and influence other leaders and business managers toward process, policy, product, and organizational changes.
• Participate in the design and execution of the strategic direction and execution of the Risk Operations Program
• Drive multiple large projects to move the business forward.
• Strengthen the overall business governance and operating model for the best-in-class Risk Operations organization

Minimum Qualifications:

• 10+ years relevant experience and a Bachelor’s degree OR Any equivalent combination of education and experience.

Additional Responsibilities & Preferred Qualifications:

Additional Information

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead and manage all payment and settlement operations for the Bank, including card acquiring settlement (e.g., Visa, Mastercard), ACH processing and return management, merchant settlement under a good-funds model, FBO account flows, retail and business savings deposit operations and loan disbursement and repayment processing.
• Oversee loan disbursement processing, repayment posting, ACH debit execution, and payment application controls in coordination with Credit, ensuring operational accuracy and segregation of duties.
• Establish and maintain effective daily settlement, reconciliation, general ledger control, dispute and exception management processes.
• Own the first-line operational risk and control environment for payment and deposit activities, including documented procedures, control monitoring, issue remediation and escalation.
• Ensure operational adherence to applicable laws, regulations, and network requirements, including card network rules, NACHA standards, BSA/AML/OFAC operational controls (in coordination with Risk), Regulation W affiliate transaction requirements, FDIC third-party oversight expectations, and consumer protection requirements including error resolution obligations under Regulation E, where applicable.
• Develop and monitor key performance and risk indicators (e.g., chargebacks, ACH returns, fraud trends, operational losses, reserve utilization) and report material issues to the COO and appropriate governance committees.
• Oversee operational performance and control adherence of affiliate and third-party service providers supporting payment and deposit activities in alignment with the Bank’s TPRM framework.
• Serve as the primary first-line operational liaison to Internal Audit and External Audit for payment, deposit, and settlement-related reviews.

De Novo Charter Formation & ILC Buildout:

• Design and implement the payment operations framework in support of a newly chartered ILC, ensuring alignment with the approved Business Plan and regulatory expectations.
• Establish acquiring controls processes, including reserve account administration, network collateral tracking, direct settlement accounting and reconciliation controls.
• Develop and formalize policies, procedures and control standards aligned with organizational policies including Acquiring Services Risk and Liquidity Policies and the internal controls framework
• Partner with Technology and Finance to implement core systems to ensure segregation of Bank books and records and support accurate regulatory and financial reporting
• Participate in model validation support, operational readiness testing and pre-opening control assessments to ensure launch preparedness.
• Build quality assurance, control testing, and documentation standards to satisfy pre-opening regulatory review.
• Support development of management committee reporting (ALCO, ERMC, Compliance & Operations Committee) and assist in building examination-ready evidence files prior to first FDIC exam.

Ongoing Program Leadership (Post Opening):

• Lead the ongoing execution and enhancement of the Bank’s payment, settlement, deposit and loan servicing operations, ensuring safe, sound and scalable performance aligned with the approved risk appetite.
• Maintain and strengthen the first-line operational control environment, including reconciliation integrity, dispute and error resolution (including Reg E, where applicable), reserve monitoring, chargeback and ACH return trends, and timely escalation of material risks.
• Ensure continued adherence to applicable laws, regulations and network requirements, including card network rules, NACHA standards, Regulation W considerations, and third-party oversight expectations.
• Partner with Finance, Risk and Credit to support deposit funding, liquidity forecasting, audit remediation and ongoing examination readiness.

Regulator Engagement & Exams:

• Serve as PPB’s primary point of contact for payment, acquiring services, ACH processing, network compliance and deposit operations matters with the FDIC and other relevant supervisors; coordinate responses, meetings, and submissions.
• Provide clear documentation of payment flows, settlement controls, network compliance processes and affiliate transaction controls.
• Demonstrate strong first line ownership and evidence based control environment along with ensuring timely, documented and Board reported remediation plans.

Culture, Training & Change Leadership:

• Drive a strong "tone from the top" culture focused on bank employees and PayPal Inc. stakeholder engagement related to their responsibility of detecting and appropriately reporting financial crimes.
• Support development of the bank’s risk culture by ensuring timely and relevant AML/CFT/OFAC trainings are delivered and completed.

Governance & Reporting Lines:

• Primary reporting: ILC Chief Operations Officer

Required Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, economics, Accounting, or a related discipline (or equivalent combination of education and experience).
• 5+ years in a senior management or Director-level leadership role with direct oversight of operational teams and first line control responsibilities
• 10+ years of progressive experience in payment operations, banking operations, or financial services functions within a regulated financial institution
• Strong working knowledge of card network rules (e.g., Visa, Mastercard), NACHA Operating Rules, BSA/AML operational requirements, Regulation