Senior Payment Specialist

Sabenza IT & Recruitment; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 600 000 - 800 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading recruitment agency is seeking an experienced Senior Payment Specialist to join their team in Johannesburg. The role requires a strong knowledge of core banking systems and expertise in payment solutions, including SWIFT ISO 20022 compliance and integration strategies. Candidates should be proficient in Java, SQL, and Unix/Linux scripting. This is a full-time position focused on delivering functional excellence in digital banking while ensuring regulatory compliance.

Qualifications

• Strong foundational knowledge of Core Banking systems and architecture.
• Expertise in the Payments domain, including SWIFT ISO 20022.
• Deep understanding of payment integration with external systems.

Responsibilities

• Analyse and understand complex business requirements related to payment processing.
• Translate business needs into functional specifications.
• Design and validate payment flows ensuring regulatory compliance.

Skills

Core Banking systems knowledge

Payments domain expertise

APIs & Microservices

SQL

Java

Unix / Linux scripting

Job description

We are looking for an experienced and driven Senior Payment Specialist (Functional) to join our high-performing digital banking. This role you will play a critical part in shaping, analysing and delivering payment solutions for mission‑critical core banking systems across regions.

Key Responsibilities

Analyse and understand complex business requirements related to payment processing compliance and integrations.

Translate business needs into functional specifications and ensure alignment with technical teams.

Design and validate payment flows ensuring regulatory compliance, scalability and resilience.

Collaborate with development and architecture teams on integration strategies using APIs, SWIFT gateways and microservices.

Work closely with QA and business users for UAT planning, testing and validation.

Drive continuous improvements in payment processing monitoring and STP rates.

Support client workshops, documentation and knowledge‑transfer activities.

Must-Have Skills & Experience

Strong foundational knowledge of Core Banking systems and architecture.

Expertise in Payments domain including :

o SWIFT ISO 20022 TCIB Cross‑border payments

o CMA regulations and country‑specific compliance

o Full Payment Lifecycle types of payments and STP / Non‑STP flows

Deep understanding of payment integration with external systems and gateways (e.g. SWIFT ISO 20022).

Experience conducting GAP analysis, understanding customer requirements and delivering functional documentation.

High‑level technical knowledge of :

o APIs & Microservices architecture

o Java, SQL, Oracle / SQL Server

Unix / Linux scripting

Familiarity with country‑specific regulatory and compliance requirements in the payments space.

Good‑to‑Have

Functional knowledge of Treasury products such as :

o FX, Money Markets (MM), Fixed Income

Experience with real‑time or high‑volume payment systems (RTGS, ACH etc.)

Exposure to Agile methodologies, CI / CD pipelines and financial system migrations.

If you’re a payment expert passionate about driving functional excellence in digital banking we want to hear from you.

Required Skills

Money Markets, SQL, Java

Employment Type : Full Time

Experience : years

Vacancy : 1