Associate Director, Sales

About the role
We're looking for a Sales professional to join our Tokyo office and take commercial ownership of our Japanese market and client base. You'll manage an existing book of business while also identifying and winning new client accounts.

This role requires someone who can operate independently in a regional market while staying closely connected to our global teams. You'll work in English internally and in Japanese with clients, so you need to be strong in both.

What you'll do

• Manage and grow a portfolio of existing Japanese client accounts, acting as the main commercial contact for senior stakeholders.

• Win new client accounts through structured business development and disciplined pipeline management.

• Build and execute account plans that tie back to client objectives and EquiLend's wider commercial strategy.

• Identify cross-sell and upsell opportunities across our full product suite.

• Run the full sales cycle from qualification and positioning through to negotiation, close, and handover.

• Lead client business reviews with clear outcomes, follow-ups, and alignment with product and service delivery teams.

• Act as the escalation point for commercial and relationship issues within your accounts.

• Feed market insight and client feedback back into product, technology, and leadership teams to support regional priorities.

• Represent EquiLend at industry events and market discussions as required.

• Contribute to regional forecasting and performance reporting with accuracy and transparency.

What we're looking for

• 10+ years in sales, account management, or commercial roles within capital markets or securities finance.

• A track record of both managing existing client relationships and winning new business.

• Native or fluent Japanese, with the ability to build trusted relationships with domestic clients.

• Strong professional English, written and spoken. You'll use English daily for internal reporting, global collaboration, and contract discussions.

• Experience working across global offices and comfort operating in a multi-region business.

• The commercial judgement to negotiate and close high-value, multi-year agreements.

• Ability to develop and deliver strategic account plans across complex, multi-product sales cycles.

• Strong stakeholder management skills, particularly the ability to influence senior decision-makers.

• Confidence using CRM platforms and sales tools with consistent data discipline.

• A structured, clear communication style suited to senior audiences.

• Comfortable working with a high degree of independence and accountability.

Why EquiLend?

• Work flexibly with up to 100 remote working days per year.

• Take time to recharge with annual vacation entitlement that increases with career level, in addition to public holidays.

• Be recognised for your contribution through a discretionary annual cash bonus, linked to individual and company performance.

• Access statutory social insurance, including pension, health insurance, and unemployment insurance.

The annual base salary range for this role is JPY 18,000,000 - JPY 22,000,000 with additional uncapped variable pay on top tied to your sales performance. This range reflects the base salary the Company reasonably expects to pay for this role at the time of posting. In accordance with applicable law, final compensation will be based on relevant experience, job-related qualifications and skills, internal equity, and geographic location. The Company reserves the right to modify this range at any time.

About EquiLend
EquiLend is a global financial technology firm at the center of the securities finance industry. Since 2001, we have built the infrastructure that financial institutions rely on to trade, manage, and report. This includes products such as our NGT trading platform, Post Trade Suite, DataLend market intelligence, RegTech solutions, and EquiLend Clearing Services.

We operate across North America, EMEA, and Asia-Pacific, working with banks, broker dealers, asset managers, and custodians to bring greater efficiency, transparency, and automation to the securities finance lifecycle. Our teams combine deep market expertise with a focus on building technology that works at scale, under real-world conditions, for some of the world's most demanding financial institutions.

EquiLend is Great Place to Work Certified™ in the U.S., UK, Ireland, and India, and has been recognized as Global Data Provider of the Year and Regulatory Solution of the Year at the Securities Finance Times Industry Excellence Awards 2025.

Diversity & Inclusion
We know that the best solutions come from teams that bring different perspectives, backgrounds, and ways of thinking to the table. At EquiLend, we are committed to building a workplace where everyone feels they belong and aim to reflect this in how we hire, develop, and support our people.

We are actively working to ensure our teams are as diverse as the global markets and clients we serve. That means creating an environment where different viewpoints are sought out and where people can do their best work regardless of background.

If you require any reasonable adjustments or accommodations at any stage of the recruitment process, please let us know and we will work with you to make it happen.

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