Senior Regulatory Counsel, Americas

Overview

This role involves serving as Senior Regulatory Counsel focused on regulatory matters across the Americas region within the payments and financial services sector. The position requires advising on complex regulatory issues including licensing, money transmission, and compliance obligations, supporting cross-border product offerings, and engaging with regulators in key jurisdictions. The role is part of a global legal and compliance team supporting a rapidly growing business navigating a complex regulatory landscape.

Responsibilities

• Handle regulatory legal issues related to business operations in the Americas.
• Provide strategic advice on existing licenses/registrations and potential new license applications to support scaling in the Americas.
• Monitor and report on regulatory trends and developments in payments and financial services in the Americas.
• Collaborate with Product Legal, Regulatory Compliance, Risk, and Financial Crime Compliance teams to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
• Support new market entry and expansion of regulatory licenses by providing regulatory mapping and licensing advice.
• Liaise with senior stakeholders globally to provide timely and pragmatic regulatory legal advice and risk assessments.
• Manage external legal counsel and consultants in the Americas to ensure high-quality and cost-effective support.
• Utilize AI and other tools to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Regulatory Legal team.
• Provide legal advice on ongoing regulatory compliance and submission of regulatory reports and filings.
• Support government relations outreach to legislators and regulatory agencies in key Americas markets.

Minimum Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with at least 8 years of relevant post-qualification experience.
• Strong regulatory experience in fintech, reputable law firms, or financial institutions, ideally with exposure to payments, e-money, FX, remittances, and/or card issuing in the Americas.
• Proven success advising on regulatory matters, handling submissions, filings, and regulatory strategy in financial services or payments.
• Experience engaging directly with regulators in key Americas markets, including federal and state/provincial regulators.
• Deep understanding of the financial services regulatory environment in the Americas, particularly payments, remittance, FX, issuing, and digital financial services.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with the ability to work cross-functionally.
• Proactive, results-driven, and able to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Ability to explain complex legal topics to non-lawyers and provide business-relevant solutions.
• Collaborative team player comfortable managing ambiguity in fast-paced environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Combination of private practice and in-house experience.
• Experience supporting expansion into new markets and launching new regulatory licenses in fintech, payments, or financial services.
• Knowledge of consumer and commercial regulatory matters, including state money transmitter licensing (MTL) and federal prudential regulators.
• Familiarity with regulations such as Reg E, UDAAP, and TILA.
• Experience using or developing RegTech, LegalTech, or AI tools to enhance legal functions.
• Canadian payment processing and money services business experience, including familiarity with RPAA, Fintrac, and provincial financial licensing.

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary range: $200,000 - $280,000

Location

• Americas region (specific location not stated)

Additional Information

• The role requires managing sensitive regulatory matters and maintaining compliance with relevant laws.
• The employer is an equal opportunity organization valuing diversity and inclusion.
• Applicants with disabilities or special needs requiring accommodation are encouraged to disclose this during the application process.