Finance Manager (Payment Operations)

Boku Inc. (BOKU.L) is the leading global provider of local mobile-first payments solutions. Global brands including Amazon, DAZN, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Netflix, Sony, Spotify, and Tencent rely on Boku to reach millions of new paying consumers who do not use credit cards with our purpose-built payment network of more than 300 local payment methods across 70+ countries. Every year, Boku processes over $10 billion in value for our customers. Incorporated in 2008, Boku is headquartered in London and San Francisco and has employees in over 39 countries around the world, including Brazil, China, Estonia, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Singapore, and the UAE. Boku is a truly global company that takes pride in its diversity and thriving equal opportunity workplace.

Department: Banking & Settlements

Reporting to: Head of Finance Operations and Projects in Banking and Settlement

Role Purpose

We’re seeking an experienced Finance Manager who will play a key role in optimizing Boku’s operational framework across digital wallets, local payment methods, and carrier billing.

You’ll work closely with Commercial, Finance, and Tax teams to understand the end-to-end payment setup, identify operational gaps, and drive automation or eliminate obsolete processes — ensuring Boku’s operations remain efficient, compliant, and scalable.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as one of the key representatives of the Payment Operations team to internal stakeholders (Product, Engineering, Commercial, Finance) during the implementation of new networks, payment partners, or merchants globally, ensuring operational readiness and smooth go-live execution.

• Critically analyse current payment operations workflows, identify bottlenecks or manual touchpoints, and recommend data-driven, scalable solutions to streamline processes and reduce operational overhead.

• Lead daily payment operations across digital wallets, local payment methods, and carrier billing.

• Collaborate cross-functionally with Commercial, Finance, Tax, Product, and Engineering teams to review operational setups, optimize cash flow, and ensure compliance alignment.

• Identify and close process gaps; automate manual workflows and retire obsolete processes to drive operational efficiency.

• Maintain strong relationships with payment service providers, digital wallet partners, MNOs, and local acquirers.

• Manage transaction processing, settlements, reconciliations, chargebacks, and exceptions.

• Monitor key metrics — transaction success rates, reconciliation status, settlement timeliness — and report performance to leadership.

• Support Product and Engineering teams on new payment integrations and enhancements.

• Ensure compliance with regulatory and internal control requirements (AML, PSD2, local rules).

• Mentor a small, high-performing payment operations team.

Measures of Success

• 100% of new network, partner, and merchant launches achieve operational readiness sign-off before go-live.

• ≥ 95% of launches delivered on or before committed timelines, with no post-launch critical operational issues.

• 0 Sev-1 / Sev-2 operational incidents within the first 30 days post-launch.

• Documented end-to-end operational playbooks created or updated for every new integration.

• Manual operational touchpoints reduced to < 5% of total Payment Operations workflows within 12 months.

• ≥ 80% of recurring operational tasks automated (reconciliation, settlement validation, exception routing).

• Year-on-year reduction in operational cost per transaction despite volume growth.

• All critical workflows documented with clear SLAs, controls, and escalation paths.

• 99% settlement accuracy across wallets, local payment methods, and carrier billing.

• ≥ 99.9% on-time settlements in line with contractual partner SLAs.

• Reconciliation breaks resolved within SLA:

• High-value / material breaks: ≤ 2 business days

• Standard breaks: ≤ 5 business days

• Zero material audit findings related to payment operations.

Key Skills and Competencies

• Experience of at least 8-12 years in payment operations, treasury, or transaction management — ideally in fintech, digital payments, or telecom billing.

• Strong understanding of digital wallets, local payment methods, and carrier billing ecosystems.

• Knowledge of cross-border payments, FX flows, and multi-currency settlements.

• Skilled in payment gateway operations, reconciliations, and ERP/ledger tools.

• Excellent problem-solving, analytical, and process improvement abilities.

• Proven ability to work cross-functionally with Commercial, Finance, and Tax teams.

• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.

• Experience leading or mentoring teams in fast-paced environments.

Qualifications

• MBA preferred, particularly for candidates with experience applying structured business and operations frameworks in fintech or payments environments.