Head of KYC Product

About The Role

We're on a mission to make simple, secure money transfers accessible to everyone, and getting verification right is core to that. We're looking for a Head of KYC Product to own the product strategy, roadmap, and delivery of our customer verification and onboarding flows across consumer, cards, and white-label, balancing regulatory compliance, financial crime controls, and a fast, low-friction customer experience.

You'll lead the KYC and Verification product area as objective owner, working as a key partner to our FinCrime, Compliance, Engineering, Customer Support and Operations teams, and building the first line of defence into the product itself across 5 jurisdictions and 60+ countries. You'll report to the Head of Product Operations & Automation.

Location: UK-first, remote working possible.

What you'll co-own

• Verification journey: Build PRD, own the end-to-end verification (including PEP, sanctions screening) journey, from onboarding and tiered KYC to full identification through enhanced due diligence using the new technology for non-doc verification, including how customers are notified and supported along the way for the best user experience. Implement the KYC/Screening (PEP, sanctions) providers and build the in-house solutions for verification and screening. Deliver the back-office operational services to support the verification flow on the Customer Support stage.

• OKRs and initiatives: own the KYC objective with its initiatives and key results, from business case and requirements through go/no-go, release and impact review.

• KPI framework: define and track verification completion time, approval and rejection rates, drop-off by stage, repeat document requests, manual review volumes, KYC-related contacts and CSAT, surfaced in an end-to-end operational dashboard, and cost for verification.

• AI and automation: lead the AI-powered KYC strategy, including build, buy or hybrid decisions, AI agents for KYC/Screening cases and FAQs, AI-assisted investigator workflows, and a risk-based verification framework.

What you'll do

• Set the strategy: own the product vision and prioritised roadmap for verification across markets, translating regulatory change (UK, EEA, US, UAE, Canada and local licence requirements) into clear, shippable requirements.

• Manage the KYC stack: own identity verification vendors, tenders and migrations, enable multi-provider support, and keep commercial terms, quality and coverage in balance.

• Reduce friction: map where customers struggle, rank the top friction points, and ship improvements that reduce drop-off and support contacts without weakening controls.

• Drive automation: automate verification scenarios end to end, including antifraud and auto-verification scenarios, proactive status communications across app, push, and ticketing, and AI agents that resolve routine cases and escalate only the complex ones.

• Deliver product and market flows: design and deliver KYC/Screening flows for specific products and market-specific logic.

• Support white label: embed verification into the operational layer for white-label partners, so new programmes launch with controls and automation built in.

Collaborate as a partner

• Engineering: define requirements, data needs and system enhancements, and manage delivery and release readiness.

• Compliance and FinCrime: agree risk appetite, risk-based limits and checks, and support audits, partner due diligence and regulatory reviews.

• Customer Support and Operations: use case feedback and ticket data to improve flows, macros and automation, and reduce manual workload.

• Partners and networks: align verification requirements with partner, scheme and licence-holder expectations.

• Run governance: chair a weekly cross-functional forum across Product, Compliance, FinCrime, Support and Operations to review KYC performance and agree improvements.

• Lead the team: build and mentor the KYC product team, and document decisions and rationale clearly.

• Take responsibility: own outcomes, and escalate material risks early.

What you'll need

• Significant product management experience in KYC, identity verification, onboarding or financial crime in fintech, payments or banking, including ownership of a function or team.

• Strong understanding of KYC, CDD/EDD, AML/TF, sanctions and PEP screening, source of funds and risk-based approaches, and how regulation in the UK, EEA, UAE, Canada, and the US translate into product requirements.

• Proven record of owning outcomes through OKRs, with clear prioritisation and trade-off thinking (completion rate vs. risk vs. customer friction vs. cost).

• Experience selecting, integrating and managing identity verification vendors, including RFPs and migrations.

• Hands-on experience with automation or AI in operational workflows, such as LLM agents, case summarisation or decision support, and the oversight they need.

• Data fluency: comfortable with SQL and BI dashboards to define metrics, diagnose funnels and measure impact.

• Experience working with Compliance, FinCrime and Operations teams, and supporting audits or regulatory reviews.

• Ownership mindset: you spot problems, propose solutions and see them through without waiting to be asked, while working as part of a team.

• Clear communication and documentation, able to explain decisions to technical, non-technical and executive stakeholders.

Nice to have

• Experience with white-label or partner programmes and their operational and compliance requirements.

• Experience with card issuing and scheme requirements (Visa, Mastercard) related to verification.

• Familiarity with customer messaging and ticketing tools, and with how support and FinCrime operations run day to day.

• Experience building or scaling a first line of defence or operations function.

What you'll achieve

First 3 months

• Understand our verification flows, providers, risk-based limits and regulatory landscape.

• Learn our KYC KPIs, tooling and the key friction and case-handling patterns.

• Build relationships across Compliance, FinCrime, Engineering, Support and Operations.

• Take ownership of the KYC roadmap and a first set of initiatives, and ship your first improvement.

By 6 months

• Own the end-to-end KYC roadmap with clear OKRs, owners, and a weekly governance rhythm.

• Launch the KYC operational dashboard and a ranked list of the top customer friction points.

• Deliver your first automation or AI-assisted workflow that removes recurring manual work.

By 12 months

• Be the owner for verification outcomes, with measurable gains in completion time, drop-off, support contacts, and manual effort.

• Have a risk-based verification framework and an AI-powered KYC operating model agreed with Compliance and FinCrime.

• Have a high-performing KYC product team and verification built into the back-office console and white-label programmes.

Why Join Paysend?

• Make a Global Impact: Join a company that is transforming how people and businesses move money around the world. Your work will contribute to products and services that help millions of customers stay connected globally.

• Own Meaningful Outcomes: We empower our people to take ownership, make decisions, and drive real impact. You'll have the opportunity to shape solutions, challenge the status quo, and see the results of your work firsthand.

• Grow with Us: As a fast-growing global fintech, we offer opportunities to learn, develop new skills, take on new challenges, and advance your career across functions and geographies.

• Collaborate with Exceptional People: Work alongside talented colleagues from diverse backgrounds and disciplines who are united by a shared ambition to build, innovate, and deliver great outcomes for our customers.

• Move Fast and Make Things Happen: We value action, curiosity, and continuous improvement. You'll be part of a culture that encourages experimentation, embraces change, and focuses on delivering meaningful results.

• Be Part of Our Journey: We're building the future of the global money movement. Join us at an exciting stage of growth where your ideas, expertise, and contributions can help shape what's next.

About Paysend

Paysend operates the holistic payment infrastructure: its own multi-jurisdictional license footprint, and a full stack of proprietary systems, from processing and FX to orchestration and settlement. The world's network wired in — 25B+ digital endpoints across 170+ countries — interoperable between fiat and stablecoins. Optimised for cost, speed, and simplicity.

For businesses plugging in: Enterprise API, Embed, Instant Settlement Accounts (ISA) — one integration, white-label cross-border, instant settlement. Technological and compliance complexity handled — typically live in weeks, subject to integration scope. All on one technology stack — businesses inherit infrastructure proven at scale every day.

For over 12 million registered users: the Paysend app, sending home across 170+ countries, every day.

Run by a lean team, on owned, proprietary technology, proven at scale — profitable in our most recent financial year, and growing rapidly.

Paysend. Money Moves.