Compliance Officer

As a Compliance Officer at GradientFi, you lead the compliance programme for a payment processing company serving 120+ countries and 180+ currencies. You ensure all operations, client onboarding, transaction processing, and services comply with applicable laws across the US, EU, Canada, and other relevant jurisdictions. You are a strategic partner who helps GradientFi grow boldly and responsibly, not just a gatekeeper.

What you'll do

• Review and approve client onboarding submissions including merchant applications, KYC/KYB documentation, and risk assessments for new and existing clients.
• Conduct enhanced due diligence on high-risk merchants, PEPs, complex corporate structures, and clients in elevated-risk jurisdictions.
• Apply risk-based decisioning for approvals, declines, and ongoing monitoring, documenting all decisions in compliance with record-keeping requirements.
• Manage periodic reviews of existing client relationships, triggering enhanced checks when risk indicators change or transaction behaviour becomes unusual.
• Maintain an accurate client risk register capturing risk ratings, review dates, and approval decisions in the compliance management system.
• Monitor regulatory developments, assess their impact on GradientFi's operations and product roadmap, and implement proportionate controls.
• Manage regulatory registrations and licensing obligations such as MSB, e-money, and VASP, ensuring all renewals and filings are met without exception.
• Maintain sanctions screening coverage across OFAC SDN, EU Consolidated List, UN Sanctions, and OSFI for all client touchpoints and payment flows.
• Develop and maintain GradientFi's full policy suite: AML/KYC, Sanctions Screening, Transaction Monitoring, Merchant Acceptance, PCI DSS, Incident Response, and Data Privacy.
• Ensure policies reflect current regulatory requirements, align with FATF recommendations, and are practical and scalable for a fast-growing payments business.
• Proactively develop new policies as GradientFi launches products, enters markets, or faces new obligations, including digital asset and stablecoin frameworks.
• Review and provide compliance sign-off on product features, partnerships, and operational changes before go-live.
• Conduct regular risk assessments and gap analyses against applicable frameworks, identifying weaknesses before they become regulatory findings.
• Maintain a gap register capturing each item's risk level, owner, remediation action, and target close date; escalate high-risk gaps immediately to the CRO and CEO.
• Drive cross-functional remediation across transaction monitoring, fraud prevention, sanctions screening, and vendor management, owning closure not just identification.
• Present quarterly gap closure reports to the executive team, including residual risk assessments for all open items.
• Design and deliver role-specific compliance training covering AML/BSA, sanctions, PCI DSS, GDPR/CCPA, consumer protection, and anti-bribery at minimum quarterly.
• Ensure all new hires complete mandatory compliance training within their first two weeks, with signed policy acknowledgement.
• Build a strong culture of compliance through proactive communications and awareness initiatives, making compliance a shared responsibility across the business.
• Maintain training records such as completion dates, assessment scores, and certifications in line with regulatory requirements.
• Oversee the compliance dimensions of payment disputes, chargebacks, refunds, and fraud cases in line with card network rules such as Visa and Mastercard, and regulatory requirements.
• Manage SAR and CTR filing obligations, ensuring all reportable activity is identified, reviewed, and submitted to the relevant FIUs within statutory timeframes.
• Ensure timely submission of all mandatory regulatory filings, including data breach notifications and large value transaction reports.
• Manage relationships with regulators, acquirers, card networks, and auditors during examinations and inquiries, coordinating with legal counsel as required.
• Prepare a monthly compliance dashboard for the executive team covering KRIs, onboarding metrics, SAR/CTR filings, training completion, open gaps, and upcoming regulatory deadlines.
• Deliver a quarterly compliance report to the Board providing a strategic view of GradientFi's compliance posture, material risks, and programme effectiveness.
• Support internal and external audits, regulatory examinations, and partner due diligence requests with accurate, well-organised evidence of programme maturity.
• Serve as the trusted compliance advisor to business teams, providing commercially aware guidance that supports growth while protecting GradientFi from regulatory and reputational risk.
• Manage licensing applications, renewals, and registrations across operating jurisdictions; oversee third-party and vendor compliance risk.
• Contribute to incident response and business continuity planning, ensuring regulatory notification obligations are met in the event of a material incident.

What you bring

• A Bachelor's degree in Law, Finance, Business, or a related field (JD or advanced degree preferred).
• 5+ years of progressive compliance experience in payment processing, fintech, banking, or money services businesses.
• Deep knowledge of AML/BSA, OFAC sanctions, PCI DSS, MSB licensing, and cross-border payment regulations across the US, EU, and Canada.
• Proven experience conducting KYC/KYB reviews, EDD, and managing ongoing merchant monitoring programmes.
• Strong understanding of chargeback and dispute rules for Visa and Mastercard, and experience with transaction monitoring systems and SAR/CTR processes.
• Excellent analytical and communication skills, high ethical standards, and the ability to make sound compliance decisions under pressure.

Nice to have

• Professional certifications such as CAMS, CCEP, CRISC, or PCI Professional (PCIP).
• Experience with digital asset compliance, VASP regulation, stablecoin frameworks, or MiCA.
• Prior experience scaling compliance at growth-stage payment companies; familiarity with card acquiring, ACH, payment orchestration, or embedded finance platforms.

About GradientFI

GradientFi is a payment processing company delivering secure, reliable, and efficient payment solutions to businesses across 120+ countries and 180+ currencies. Through CentryOS (programmable financial infrastructure for marketplaces) and Poket (a cross-border multi-currency wallet supporting cash, stablecoins, crypto, and NFTs), the company spreads economic freedom and financial prosperity globally.