Trade Finance Specialist

Role Overview

This leadership position sits within Business Banking's Transaction Banking (TB) franchise, focused on the commercial banking segment. You will own the TB strategy for this portfolio, leading a sales team to deepen client relationships and grow revenue across working capital, trade finance, and cash management solutions. Day to day, you will balance senior client engagement with internal coordination across product, operations, and coverage teams to ensure deals are structured, priced, and implemented effectively while maintaining rigorous risk discipline.

Key Responsibilities

• Own and execute the annual TB business plan for Business Banking’s commercial banking clients, translating revenue targets into a clear sales strategy for the team.
• Lead direct, senior-level client interactions, acting as the TB subject matter expert and driving negotiations on complex transactional banking mandates.
• Develop and manage a sales pipeline across both existing clients and a defined target list, using account planning and opportunity tracking to meet revenue goals.
• Increase client penetration by cross-selling the bank’s full TB product suite — including documentary trade products such as LCs, bonds and guarantees, supply chain finance, and cash management structures — and replicate successful solutions across the portfolio.
• Work with the Business Banking service and operations teams to deliver a consistent, high-quality client experience, ensuring adherence to service standards and resolving escalations.
• Drive pricing discipline: ensure all deals are authorized under mandate, agreed with the customer, and set up correctly in the system for accurate billing and collection.
• Maintain compliance with operational risk and regulatory requirements, including fraud prevention in product applications and adherence to health, safety, and security standards.
• Set and review individual performance objectives for team members, identify skill gaps, and recommend targeted training to build frontline sales capability.

Requirements & Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree or equivalent; a post-graduate qualification is preferred.
• At least 5 years of experience in Business Banking or Corporate & Investment Banking, with a proven track record in frontline transactional sales.
• Demonstrated experience in sales management and leading a team to deliver quantitative and qualitative targets.
• Deep technical knowledge across Treasury and Transaction Banking: working capital products, documentary trade finance (LCs, bonds, guarantees), bank and country risk products, supply chain finance, and cash management (payments, receipts, liquidity structures, and banking system infrastructure).
• Strong data analysis skills to interpret finance-provided reports, monitor pipeline performance, and make data-driven sales decisions.
• Exposure to treasury, credit, and country risk principles, and the ability to apply sound risk management in structuring deals.
• Willingness to be stationed outside Nairobi — candidates with relevant work experience outside Nairobi will have an added advantage.