Risk Lead
Our mission
We’re making Africa the first cashless continent.
In 2017, over half the population in Sub-Saharan Africa had no bank account. That’s for good reason—the fees are too high, the closest branch can be miles away, and nobody takes cards. Without access to financial institutions, people are forced to keep their savings under the mattress. Small business owners rely on lenders who charge extortionate rates. Parents spend hours waiting in line to pay school fees in cash.
We’re solving this by building financial services that just work: no account fees, instantly available, and accepted everywhere. In places where electricity, water and roads don’t always work, you can still send money with Wave. In 2017, we launched a mobile app in Senegal for cash deposit, withdrawal, and peer-to-peer and business payments. Now, we have millions of users across six countries and are growing fast.
Our goal is to make Africa the first cashless continent and that’s where you come in…


How you’ll help us achieve it
Wave is now the largest financial institution in Senegal, with over 7 million users. And, we’re still in the early days of our product roadmap and potential impact on people’s everyday lives.
Our Risk team plays a pivotal role in safeguarding Wave against fraud and mitigating associated risks while minimizing impact on user experience and business operations. Through rigorous fraud analysis, field audits, and comprehensive risk management strategies, they proactively detect and combat user scams, phishing attempts, and general fraudulent activities. Your efforts on this team will help to drive proactive risk mitigation efforts, protect user trust, and ensure sustainable business growth by maintaining a secure and resilient operational environment.
This role will report directly to the Regional Head of Risk.


In this role, you’ll
• Be responsible for enabling the company to take controlled risks by defining, deploying, and monitoring a risk management system, and proposing solutions that help the leadership team as we rapidly scale our business.
• Develop and manage Wave’s risk identification and prioritization systems, including protection mechanisms.
• Identify and evaluate risks (activities, processes, information systems, production tools, external events, etc.)
• Perform risk assessments on new products/features.
• Implement the risk management policy and prepare periodic reports on risk management activities.
• Monitor internal mechanisms to report, investigate, and escalate risk issues.
• Anticipate changes in risk trends and their effects on the company.
• Provide risk management advice on a range of topics.
• Assist in preparing communications to external stakeholders on risk-related matters.
• Support the preparation of risk committee meetings.
• Other duties as assigned by the business.


Key details
• Location: You’ll work from our office in Senegal and may travel to field locations.
• Work authorization in Senegal is required.
• Our salaries are competitive and calculated using a transparent formula. We run performance reviews twice a year and award bonuses to strong performers who have been with the company for more than 6 months.
• We offer generous health insurance for yourself and your dependents.
• We support working parents – we offer generous parental leave policies (26 weeks for mothers and 4 weeks for fathers) and subsidized child care when you return to work.
• We help you live your fullest life now! We subsidize gym memberships and fitness classes.
• Airtime reimbursement.
• Free food and a beautiful office space.


Requirements
• 5+ years of experience in risk management.
• A secondary degree in Finance, Accounting, Risk Management, Business & Economics, or a comparable field.
• Excellent analytical skills and a taste for in-depth technical investigation.
• Fluency in French and English.
• Knowledge in fraud and/or compliance operations.
• Experience in mobile money operations or in the financial services sector will be an added advantage.


You might be a good fit if you
• Possess the ability to assess complex data sets, identify patterns, and draw insightful conclusions.
• Have a track record in developing, implementing, and managing risk management systems and frameworks in a fast-paced environment.
• Have a deep understanding of risk management principles, methodologies, and best practices.
• Maintain a strong ethical foundation in your approach to decision-making.
• Are adept at proposing practical, effective solutions to mitigate identified risks and address emerging risk issues.
• Have a strong track record of collaborating and partnering with cross-functional teams.
• Have excellent communication and presentation skills, including the ability to convince and influence a wide range of stakeholders at all levels.
• Exhibit meticulous attention to detail in all analyses and processes, ensuring accuracy and thoroughness.
• Have the ability to anticipate changes in risk trends and proactively make adjustments to risk management strategies.
• Are intellectually curious, creative in the way you go about tackling problems, and embrace failure as a means to spark innovation and growth.
• Love owning projects – you’re autonomous yet know when to escalate problems.
• Are comfortable defaulting to over-communication and overreaching when it comes to coordination.

Our team
• We have a rapidly growing in-country team in Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Burkina Faso, The Gambia, and Uganda, plus remote team members spread across the world.
• We’re deeply passionate about our mission of bringing radically affordable financial services to the people who need them most.
• We foster autonomy for our employees. You’ll own your projects at every stage, from understanding the problem to monitoring your solution in production.
• We raised the largest Series A in Africa in 2021. Our world-class investors, include Founders Fund, Sequoia Heritage, Stripe, Ribbit Capital, Y Combinator, and Partech Africa.
• In 2023, we were on Y Combinator’s top 50 companies by revenue.


How to apply
• Fill out the form below, and upload a resume in English and a cover letter describing your interest in Wave and the role.
• We review applications frequently and recommend that you apply to the role that most closely aligns with your skills, experience and career goals.
• Wave is an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.