Risk Executive

Role Overview

This role sits at the heart of Pesapal’s risk operations, focusing on real-time detection and resolution of fraudulent activity across multiple payment channels. Day to day, you will review transaction alerts, investigate suspicious patterns, and manage chargeback disputes—while also collaborating with internal teams to refine fraud controls and protect both merchants and customers. Your work directly supports the company’s goal of maintaining a secure payment environment without compromising the user experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Monitor payment transactions from POS, online, and card-not-present channels to identify unusual behaviour and escalate confirmed fraud for further action.
• Prioritise and review system-generated fraud alerts, performing behavioural analysis to distinguish genuine transactions from suspicious ones.
• Investigate flagged transactions by contacting merchants, customers, and financial institutions to verify legitimacy and document findings.
• Manage the full chargeback lifecycle—from logging incoming disputes and gathering representment evidence to submitting documentation within card scheme deadlines.
• Track chargeback trends and dispute volumes, recommending process adjustments to reduce losses and improve recovery rates.
• Support operational risk controls by reviewing merchant onboarding documentation, settlement requests, and change requests for potential risk flags.
• Prepare periodic reports and dashboards on fraud losses, chargeback performance, and emerging risk patterns for management review.
• Deliver fraud awareness training to commercial and support teams, and partner with Compliance, Finance, and Technology to strengthen overall risk posture.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, Economics, Risk Management, Criminology, or a related field.
• At least 4 years of experience in fraud monitoring, transaction monitoring, operational risk, investigations, or financial crime—ideally within fintech, banking, payments, or financial services.
• Hands-on experience managing fraud alerts, chargebacks, and transaction investigations in a high-volume environment.
• Familiarity with card payment schemes, acquiring, or payment processing is strongly preferred.
• Good understanding of the regulatory and payments landscape in Kenya or Tanzania is highly desirable.
• Professional certifications in fraud or risk management are an added advantage.
• Strong analytical and investigative skills with keen attention to detail and sound judgement.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills for internal reporting and stakeholder engagement.
• Ability to handle multiple priorities under pressure while maintaining high ethical standards and discretion.
• Proficiency with fraud monitoring tools and Microsoft Office applications.