Strategic Partnership and Market Expansion Lead

WatersEdge Solutions; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 1,000,000 - 1,400,000; Full time

Job summary

WatersEdge Solutions in Cape Town is seeking a Strategic Partnership and Market Expansion Lead—a senior, hands-on operator who will identify new markets, partnerships and channels, and personally drive deals from concept to revenue.

You’ll engage C-suite stakeholders, test commercial hypotheses, pilot channels and structure agreements to deliver sustainable, high-margin revenue while coordinating with Product, Credit, Risk and Operations.

Qualifications

• Tertiary degree in business, finance, economics, engineering or similar.
• 5+ years hands-on experience in high-growth environments.
• Experience in strategic business development or commercial partnerships.
• Proven experience pitching, negotiating and closing complex, long-cycle partnerships.

Responsibilities

• Identify untapped markets and high-value strategic partnership opportunities.
• Build a rigorous pipeline of potential growth opportunities.
• Develop and test hypotheses around new markets, products and channels.
• Own the complete commercial cycle from cold outreach through negotiation and close.
• Structure innovative commercial agreements focused on sustainable, high-margin revenue.
• Collaborate with Product, Credit, Risk and Operations to launch and scale initiatives.
• Track commercial performance across origination volume, revenue, CAC, unit economics and conversion rates.
• Maintain accountability for partnerships after deals are signed.

Skills

Strategic partnerships

Business development

Negotiation

0-to-1

C-suite engagement

Revenue growth

SME lending knowledge

B2B fintech

Education

Business, Finance, Economics, Engineering or similar (quantitative)

5+ years in high-growth environments

Job description

Location: Cape Town, South Africa
Employment Type: Full-Time | Individual Contributor
Industry: Fintech | SME Lending | Financial Services | Strategic Partnerships

WatersEdge Solutions is partnering with a high-growth fintech business to find a commercially driven Strategic Partnership and Market Expansion Lead to identify and unlock its next wave of growth.

This is a senior individual contributor opportunity for someone who combines strategic thinking with the ability to personally originate, negotiate and close complex commercial opportunities. You won’t be managing a large team or inheriting an established playbook. Instead, you’ll identify new markets, partnerships and channels, test opportunities from 0-to-1, and turn the strongest ideas into scalable revenue streams.

About the Role

The business has ambitious growth plans and needs a commercial operator who can find opportunities that aren't immediately obvious and then take personal responsibility for proving whether they can work.

You’ll continuously assess the fintech landscape, identify new market opportunities and strategic partnerships, build commercial hypotheses and pressure-test them with real customers and partners. This could mean pitching a product concept while it is still being developed, piloting a new channel or structuring a complex partnership from scratch.

This is very much a hands-on dealmaking role. You’ll personally engage C-suite and senior stakeholders, own the commercial cycle from cold outreach through negotiation and close, and remain accountable after signature to ensure partnerships translate into measurable revenue and growth.

Key Responsibilities

• Identify untapped markets, non-obvious customer segments and high-value strategic partnership opportunities.

• Build and manage a rigorous pipeline of potential growth opportunities.

• Develop and test hypotheses around new markets, products and channels.

• Assess addressable market, revenue potential, operational complexity and commercial viability.

• Personally identify, approach and engage C-suite and senior decision-makers at target partners.

• Own the complete commercial cycle from cold outreach and discovery through negotiation and close.

• Structure innovative commercial agreements focused on sustainable, high-margin revenue.

• Navigate product, regulatory, credit and risk considerations to progress complex deals.

• Take new growth initiatives, products and channels from 0-to-1.

• Sell and pilot early-stage concepts and MVPs while they are still being developed.

• Capture market and partner feedback and translate it into actionable input for Product teams.

• Turn ambiguous opportunities into clear commercial execution plans.

• Test opportunities quickly, discontinue weak ideas and scale initiatives demonstrating meaningful traction.

• Take ongoing ownership of strategic partnerships and channels after deals are signed.

• Track commercial performance across origination volume, revenue, CAC, unit economics and conversion rates.

• Identify underperformance and rapidly adjust tactics, channels or commercial terms.

• Work closely with Product, Credit, Risk and Operations teams to launch and scale initiatives.

• Ensure signed partnerships successfully move from agreement into operational revenue generation.

• Develop business cases and ROI models for potential new markets and growth initiatives.

• Monitor fintech trends, competitor activity, regulatory developments and emerging partnership opportunities.

• Provide commercial insight to executive leadership during strategic planning.

• Take direct accountability for ambitious revenue and growth targets.

• Maintain clear reporting across pipeline health, pilot traction and live partnership performance.

What You’ll Bring

• Relevant tertiary degree in Business, Finance, Economics, Engineering or a similar quantitative field.

• 5+ years of hands-on experience within high-growth environments.

• Strong experience in one or more of the following:

  • Strategic Business Development or Commercial Partnerships

  • Management Consulting or Technology Strategy

  • Venture Building or early-stage start-up growth

  • Product Management with direct commercial and P&L ownership

• Proven experience taking new markets, products, initiatives or channels from 0-to-1.

• Direct experience pitching, negotiating and closing complex, long-cycle commercial partnerships.

• Experience personally carrying and delivering against revenue or growth targets.

• Strong understanding of SME lending, B2B fintech, embedded finance or the broader South African financial services environment.

• Strong commercial judgement and ability to distinguish genuine revenue opportunities from ideas that won’t scale.

• Ability to build commercial business cases and evaluate ROI.

• Confidence engaging and negotiating with C-suite and senior stakeholders.

• Ability to work effectively across Product, Credit, Risk and Operations.

• Strong analytical skills with an understanding of metrics such as CAC, unit economics, conversion and revenue.

• A highly accountable, execution-focused approach.

Nice to Have

• Direct experience within SME lending.

• Embedded finance experience.

• Experience launching new fintech products or commercial channels.

• Previous exposure to South African financial services regulation.

• Experience working in a high-growth fintech or technology start-up.

• Experience commercialising early-stage products or MVPs.

• Strong network within the South African fintech, banking or financial services ecosystem.

What’s On Offer

This is an opportunity to have a direct impact on the next stage of growth within an established fintech business. Rather than maintaining existing partnerships, you’ll have the mandate to explore new markets, test new commercial ideas and build meaningful revenue streams from the ground up.

The role offers significant exposure to executive leadership and cross-functional teams, while giving you direct ownership of commercial outcomes. It will particularly appeal to someone who enjoys the pace and ambiguity of building something new but wants to do so within a business that already has an established market presence.

Company Culture

This is a high-performance environment built around ownership, experimentation and execution. People are expected to challenge assumptions, move quickly from ideas to market testing and use real commercial evidence to determine what happens next.

The successful person will be comfortable operating without a detailed playbook, influencing across functions and taking personal accountability for results. Success here is measured by real, deployed revenue and sustainable growth rather than activity alone.

Please Note: If you have not been contacted within 10 working days, consider your application unsuccessful.