Internal Audit & Investigations Senior Associate

Role Overview

This position owns the full lifecycle of internal investigations across M-KOPA's five operating markets — Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa — taking cases from the first reported concern through evidence gathering, interviews and final findings. Alongside individual casework, the role protects the credibility of the company's whistleblower and grievance channels and gives the Board Audit & Risk Committee a reliable, evidence-based picture of what misconduct trends are emerging. It matters because the business's ability to act fairly and decisively on allegations depends on someone who can be trusted by complainants, subjects and leadership alike.

Key Responsibilities

• Run investigations end to end: assess and triage incoming concerns, scope the case, plan the approach, collect and secure evidence, interview complainants, witnesses and subjects, analyse findings, and issue the closing report.
• Apply one consistent, defensible methodology whether the matter involves fraud, workplace misconduct, harassment, safeguarding concerns or breaches of company policy.
• Keep a complete, well-organised record of evidence and decisions on every case so that findings hold up under disciplinary review or legal challenge.
• Recommend outcomes and remedial action that are proportionate to the facts, including fixes for the control weaknesses an investigation has exposed.
• Prepare monthly and quarterly reporting for the Head of Internal Audit & Risk and the Board Audit & Risk Committee, covering case volumes, recurring themes, outcomes and early indicators of emerging risk.
• Work closely with HR, Legal, Risk and country leadership throughout a case, and handle conversations with complainants and subjects with empathy, impartiality and strict discretion.
• Support the daily running of the whistleblower and grievance programme, ensuring concerns are triaged, tracked and resolved in line with policy and recognised IIA/ACFE practice.
• Own the case management platform, maintaining accurate tracking, secure evidence storage and reliable reporting while safeguarding confidentiality.
• Use case data to spot recurring themes and systemic control gaps, and feed those insights into audit planning and risk reporting.
• Advance the wider audit function by promoting the use of M-KOPA's technology and AI capabilities in risk sensing, scoping, testing and reporting, and by embedding data analytics and continuous monitoring into audit delivery — all while preserving independence, governance and confidentiality.
• Help standardise and raise quality through modern audit tooling such as audit management platforms, workflow automation and digital working papers, with clear controls over evidence, versioning and review.
• Coach and share knowledge with colleagues in Internal Audit on analytics- and AI-enabled techniques, contribute to related methodology and standards, and take on strategic projects for the Head of Audit & Risk as needed.
• Strengthen investigation methodology, templates and standard operating procedures, manage conflicts of interest properly, and stay current on evolving fraud typologies, investigative practice and regulatory expectations in the markets where M-KOPA operates.

Requirements & Qualifications

• A degree in a business-related discipline, law, criminology or a comparable field from a recognised university.
• Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) certification is required.
• Additional credentials such as CIA, CISA, forensic accounting or investigation-specific certifications are an advantage.
• At least 8 years of professional experience, including substantial hands-on work leading internal investigations into fraud, misconduct, harassment or safeguarding matters.
• Background in financial services, fintech or another comparably regulated organisation that operates across multiple markets is strongly preferred.
• Proven track record of writing investigation findings and reports for senior management or Board-level readers.
• Unquestionable personal integrity and sound ethical judgement — this role only works if every party to a case can trust the person holding it.
• Strong interviewing ability: building rapport quickly, asking probing questions and staying composed and neutral when conversations become difficult.
• Excellent written communication, with the ability to produce clear, factual, defensible case reports.
• Discretion and calm under pressure, including the maturity to handle emotionally charged and highly confidential matters.
• Confident stakeholder management across HR, Legal, Risk and country leadership.
• Capacity to run a caseload independently, judging priorities carefully across several concurrent investigations.
• Comfort working across multiple markets and cultures, with a willingness to travel.