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.
We’re looking for a Public Affairs Lead in Senegal to unlock growth opportunities through strategic initiatives to build and manage government officials, regulatory bodies and key stakeholders in a highly competitive environment.
The ideal candidate will have a proven track record in navigating complex regulatory environments, advocating for favorable policies and ensuring company’s interests are well-represented at the government level.
You will report to the Country General Manager.


In this role, you will:
• Develop and execute a comprehensive stakeholder and relationship management strategy, to advance Wave’s interests in a highly competitive fintech market.
• Cultivate strong relationships with key stakeholders, including government officials, regulatory authorities, and industry associations who influence the ecosystem, and ensure they understand Wave’s mission and positioning.
• Build and support key partnerships (business and advocacy-related) for the company.
• Represent Wave at key meetings and conferences. You will present our vision, mission, and impact in a compelling manner.
• Advocate for policies that support innovation and competitiveness within the fintech industry, while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Provide strategic insights on how government/regulator relations efforts can contribute to maintaining a competitive edge in the market – work includes analysing legislative and regulatory developments in the sector and providing recommendations to internal stakeholders
• Collaborate with internal teams to align government/regulators relations efforts with broader business objectives.
• Work closely across internal teams to navigate challenges and mitigate risks associated with the competitive industry environment.
• Actively participate and advise PR and other teams in developing and implementing strategies for effective crisis management.
• Support the country General Manager in creating engagement platforms with key stakeholders across the country.
• Provide strong and valuable information to build the regional Public Affairs strategy.


Key details
• The location is based primarily in Dakar, with some travel.
• Work authorisation 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 pay 90% of your health care insurance premium cost 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 subsidised child care when you return to work.
• We help you live your fullest life now- we subsidise gym memberships and fitness classes.
• Airtime reimbursement
• Free food and a beautiful office space

Requirements
• A degree in Finance, Business, Policy, Economics or equivalent
• Fluency in English and French is required
• A minimum of 8+ years experience carrying out advocacy, government and/or regulators relations or lobbying work in a highly competitive and regulated industry with a proven track record of impactful outcomes
• Strong network across the government, regulatory and private sector
• Excellent writing, research, and communication skills.


You might be a good fit if you
• Have strong and high-level networks (key deciders in regulatory institutions, administrations, government).
• Are excited and motivated by the power of technology to solve global problems.
• Are entrepreneurial and can think outside the box in finding solutions to blockers.
• Are a clear, proactive, and excellent communicator – both in verbal and writing skills.
• Are excellent at research and can put together technical or non-technical briefs that are well articulated.
• Have exceptional political astuteness
• Are a good team player.
• Are at ease with giving presentations, rolling up your sleeves, and working individually on small company projects or short-term crises.
• Are intellectually curious, creative in the way you tackle problems, and embrace failure as a means to spark innovation and growth.
• Are excessively detail-oriented and seek to achieve excellence in everything you do.


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.
Please note that Wave is not actively hiring in the U.S. at this time. Therefore, applications submitted by U.S.-based applicants will not be reviewed by our Talent team. We encourage all U.S.-based applicants to keep an eye on our Careers page for updates, as we will provide notifications once we resume hiring in the U.S.