General Manager - Risk | Wpay

- Scale & Impact: Lead risk and compliance strategy for Australia’s largest non-bank payments provider, processing over $87B+ annually across 1.5B+ transactions.
- Leadership: Report directly to the Managing Director, join the Executive Leadership Team, and serve as the designated AML/CTF Compliance Officer for AU & NZ.
- Commercial Enablement: Shape the future of Wpay by balancing robust regulatory safeguards with agile commercial growth as we continue to expand our merchant acquiring in AU & NZ

About Wpay

Wpay is one of Australia and New Zealand’s leading payment experience companies. Founded within the Woolworths Group, we are Australia’s largest non-bank payments provider, processing over 1.5 billion transactions and $87 billion+ in volume each year. We service over 25 million in-store and 27 million online customers every single week.

We unlock the untapped potential of payments to help complex businesses simplify operations, accelerate growth, and keep their customers safe from fraud. As we expand, we are looking for bold, commercially minded leaders to shape the future of payments in an industry ready for disruption.

What will I be doing?

As General Manager – Risk, you will serve as a pivotal member of the Wpay Executive Leadership Team, reporting directly to the Managing Director. Acting as our primary second line of defense, you will champion an enterprise-wide risk, compliance, and governance culture that balances robust safeguards with agile commercial growth.

You will hold formal delegation of authority and direct oversight over risk mitigation across our $87bn+ transaction portfolio. Serving as the appointed AML/CTF Compliance Officer for Australia and New Zealand, you will protect our regulatory license to operate while directly enabling Wpay’s continued strategic expansion into merchant acquiring.

Key Responsibilities

- Strategic Risk Leadership: Establish and champion the multi-year vision for Wpay Risk & Compliance, aligning our risk appetite directly with ambitious growth goals.
- Compliance Program Governance: Fulfill statutory duties as the designated AML/CTF Compliance Officer across AU and NZ, delivering board-level assurance and managing regulatory relationships (AUSTRAC, RBA, NZ DIA).
- Commercial Enablement & Partnering: Collaborate closely with Commercial teams to streamline merchant acquiring due diligence, educate prospective clients, and remove unnecessary friction from onboarding.
- Merchant Acquiring Risk Decisioning: Serve as the final authority on complex risk decisioning, high-risk merchant onboarding, and fraud/non-compliance terminations.
- Payment Scheme & PCI Governance: Lead the strategy, implementation, and annual certification for PCI-DSS compliance and Scheme rules (Visa, Mastercard, & regulatory bodies).
- Policy Advocacy & Industry Presence: Represent Wpay in key industry forums to shape emerging payments policy and regulatory consultations.
- Predictive Innovation: Champion data analytics and predictive tools to drive proactive fraud disruption and advanced risk detection.
- Executive Leadership: Direct, mentor, and elevate the Wpay Risk Team (3 direct reports) while managing the Wpay Risk Council and advising the AU & NZ Boards of Directors.
- Driving the Wpay Risk Culture by developing and embedding risk policies and compliance training.

What will I bring?

- 10+ years of senior risk, compliance, and governance experience within Financial Services, Fintech, or Payments.
- 5+ years in a senior leadership role within a merchant acquirer, payment service provider (PSP), or financial institution.
- Proven Track Record: Experience serving as a designated AML/CTF Compliance Officer with deep expertise in regulatory program management across both Australia and New Zealand.
- Executive & Board Presence: Proven capability to present, advise, and influence at Board, Executive Committee, and Regulatory levels.
- Domain SME: Deep technical knowledge of Payment Scheme Rules (Visa/Mastercard), AusPayNet standards, merchant credit/counterparty risk and AML/CTF.
- Commercial Mindset: Demonstrated ability to balance regulatory compliance with strategic, revenue-generating business objectives.

Why Join Wpay?

At Wpay, you get the best of both worlds: the agility, innovation, and speed of a scale-up fintech, backed by the scale, security, and strength of the Woolworths Group. You’ll lead a high-performing team, drive genuine industry transformation, and shape how millions of people pay every day.

Ready to lead the next evolution of payments risk? Apply today to join the Wpay leadership team.