Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Specialist Property & Bridging Finance

Prostaff; South Africa; On-site; ZAR 1 500 000 - 2 000 000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent financial services company in South Africa seeks a CEO to provide strategic leadership and oversee all operations. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in finance, with demonstrated ability in scaling businesses and managing risk within regulated environments. Responsibilities include driving growth, developing new products, and ensuring compliance with financial regulations. Salary package is negotiable depending on experience.

Qualifications

• Proven ability to scale a business profitably and lead P&L.
• Strong team-building skills and high accountability.
• Comfort with loan book analytics, credit policies, and risk frameworks.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership and financial stewardship to achieve growth.
• Lead the company into its next phase of growth.
• Define and execute a multi-year strategic growth plan.
• Build and lead a high-performance team.
• Ensure compliance with financial regulations.

Skills

Financial oversight

Strategic leadership

Operational management

Risk management

Team-building

Entrepreneurial mindset

Education

Bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or Economics

Postgraduate qualification such as MBA, CA(SA), or CFA

Job description

Minimum requirements for the role

• A bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or Economics minimum; Postgraduate qualification such as MBA, CA(SA), or CFA preferred. (Will look at an Engineer – Must understand management accounts – Finance experience) CA preferred.
• Previous experience working in financial services; ideally within short-term credit, property finance / lending, bridging finance, is essential for the role.
• Proven ability to scale a business profitably, experience leading P&L.
• Strong team-builder with high accountability and discipline.
• Able to identify growth opportunities and execute with clarity.
• Comfort with loan book analytics, credit policies, and risk frameworks.
• Must be an entrepreneurial, results-driven, pragmatic, and collaborative person.
• Demonstrated history of scaling a business, preferably in a regulated lending or fintech environment.
• Strong operational management, team-building, and performance culture development.
• Ability to identify and execute on adjacent market expansion opportunities.
• Hands‑on, metrics‑driven, pragmatic, credible with funders and partners.
• Strong background in strategic leadership, financial oversight, and governance.
• Demonstrated ability to manage risk, compliance, and regulatory relationships in the South African financial context.

The successful candidate will be responsible for

• Providing strategic leadership, operational direction, and financial stewardship to achieve sustainable growth and profitability. The CEO will oversee all business operations, lending activities, compliance, and stakeholder relationships, ensuring that the company maintains strong governance, client trust, and market competitiveness within South Africa’s short-term finance and property lending sectors.
• Leading the company into its next phase of growth. The CEO will drive operational excellence, scale the existing loan book, lead the development of new product lines, and cultivate a culture of high performance and accountability.
• Defining and executing a multi‑year strategic growth plan and expanding into adjacent markets (e.g., development finance, SME lending, fintech platforms).
• Leading the development of new products or digital offerings.
• Building and leading a high‑performance team with strong accountability and driving efficiency in origination, underwriting, collections, and client service.
• Implementing best‑practice internal systems and reporting.
• Overseeing lending capital deployment, cash flow, and risk‑adjusted returns as well as managing funding relationships and optimise capital efficiency.
• Ensuring prudent cost control and margin protection.
• Maintaining robust credit and operational risk frameworks and ensuring compliance with all applicable financial regulations.
• Engaging actively with the board and key stakeholders.
• Leading strategic partnerships and new distribution channels to achieve sustainable growth and profitability.

Salary package, including benefits, is highly negotiable depending on experience gained.