China Expansion Lead - Shanghai

Description

We’re looking for a China Expansion Lead to kickstart our market development and expansion plans in Shanghai. This is a unique and exciting pioneering opportunity to help launch (and grow) TransferWise in new markets in China, allowing millions more potential customers to save money by using our services.

This is not your typical business development, relationship or country launch role. Over time, you will have full responsibility for overseeing our financial services partnerships, figuring out a new market entry strategy and executing on it, and managing critical relationships with government departments, regulators and banking partners. Through your work, you will have the ability to directly influence our product capabilities for the region.

Your mission:

• New market entry - Identify the most appropriate way to launch TransferWise in China,  then roll up your sleeves and make it happen. If we need a licence, you will need to execute the process end-to-end: understand the regulations, do the application and get the regulatory buy-in.
• Financial services partnerships - Maintain and improve relationships with financial institutions (banks, payment companies, card schemes) and lead commercial negotiations to drive down costs. You will monitor our economics to ensure that our service is competitive; if needed, onboard new FI partners.
• Strategic initiatives related to international expansion - You will identify new / relevant local ways to benefit customers (such as a new local payment method or a new product feature) and implement it. You will also grow our new product offerings by identifying and pitching to relevant businesses in your target markets.
• Understanding how our product works will be key to finding these new opportunities.

This role will give you the opportunity to:

• Choose your own path to success - you’ll have the freedom to define the vision and the responsibility for making it happen
• Gain international exposure -  you will work with our teams in offices around the world as well as meet with regulators and partners across APAC
• Be a part of starting something new by helping launch TransferWise in a new market 

A bit about you:

• Native Mandarin speaker to communicate with our partners
• Experience in fintech, payments or regulation
• Able to get stuff done. Not afraid to get hands dirty to deliver what is needed. Bonus points if you have completed a license application in a highly regulated industry in the past. 
• Experience of building business relationships with financial institutions in China, and dealing with risk/compliance teams within these institutions.
• Understand how local and international payments work (bonus points for specific knowledge of payment systems in China and APAC!)
• An analytical thinker. You have the ability to figure out the ideal operational and commercial process with every new country / partner
• Excellent at managing external relationships (regulators and financial institutions)
• Able to understand regulations across various jurisdictions, and make pragmatic, risk-based decisions on how these need to be implemented
• Happy to work independently
• Passionate about transforming the financial industry for good
• You are willing to spend the first two months onboarding overseas out of our Singapore or Hong Kong office, and at least a few days every month travelling to Singapore or to our offices in Europe when needed

Some extra skills that would be awesome:

• Experience working in fintech within China

We’re people without borders — and without prejudice too. We want to work with the best people, no matter their background. So if you’re passionate about learning new things and keen to join our mission, you’ll fit right in.

Also, qualifications aren’t that important to us. If you’ve got great experience, and you’re great at articulating your thinking, we’d like to hear from you.

And because we believe that diverse teams build better products, we’d especially love to hear from you if you’re from an under-represented demographic.

Please make sure your applications are submitted in English, as this is our working language.