Senior Legal Counsel at Wise

London, England, United Kingdom

Wise Logo
Not SpecifiedCompensation
Senior (5 to 8 years)Experience Level
Full TimeJob Type
UnknownVisa
FinTech, Financial ServicesIndustries

Requirements

  • UK-qualified lawyer with at least 7 years PQE
  • Law firm or in-house experience, focusing on financial regulation relating to payments and financial services
  • Experience building and scaling a team
  • Ability to evaluate and summarise legal advice and communicate advice in a succinct and pragmatic way to different areas of the business
  • Proven aptitude for commercial contract structuring, drafting, and negotiation
  • Clear communication, project coordination, and management skills
  • Ability to navigate difficult issues and multiple stakeholders, advising the business on key risks, and developing solutions

Responsibilities

  • Advise and lead on a wide range of legal matters relating to Wise’s day to day and strategic initiatives
  • Provide clear advice on regulatory matters relating to financial services, covering both new and existing products and licences
  • Navigate the rapidly changing regulatory landscape, ensuring Wise's products and operations adhere to relevant legal and regulatory requirements
  • Engage proactively and collaborate effectively with regulators
  • Work closely and build relationships with multiple business teams across Wise including Compliance, Product, Wise Platform, Banking and Expansion and Operations
  • Become a trusted advisor on issues such as financial and consumer regulations, sanctions, AML and anti-bribery issues, banking arrangements, new products, partnerships, employment issues etc
  • Structure, draft, and negotiate complex commercial agreements with bank partners, API users and enterprise customers
  • Mentor and upskill the Legal Team (based in London, New York, Austin, Tallinn, Singapore, Brussels and São Paulo) to continue delivering on initiatives that will impact the business

Skills

Key technologies and capabilities for this role

financial regulationpayments regulationregulatory complianceAMLsanctionsanti-briberycommercial agreementscontract negotiationregulator engagement

Questions & Answers

Common questions about this position

What is the salary range for the Senior Legal Counsel position?

The salary range is £127,000-£150,000.

Is this role remote or on-site, and what's the office requirement?

The role is based out of the London office with a hybrid model requiring presence in the office 3 days per week on average.

What qualifications and skills are required for this position?

Candidates must be a UK-qualified lawyer with at least 7 years PQE, experience in financial regulation for payments and financial services, proven skills in commercial contract structuring, drafting, and negotiation, plus strong communication and stakeholder management abilities.

What is the company culture like at Wise?

Wise emphasizes diverse, equitable, and inclusive teams, celebrating differences to ensure every team member feels respected, empowered, and able to progress in their careers.

What makes a strong candidate for this Senior Legal Counsel role?

Strong candidates have law firm or in-house experience in financial regulation, experience building and scaling teams, the ability to provide succinct pragmatic advice, and skills in navigating complex issues with multiple stakeholders.

Wise

Facilitates low-cost international money transfers

About Wise

Wise focuses on international money transfers, providing a low-cost alternative to traditional banks. It uses a peer-to-peer system to match transfers between users in different countries, which helps reduce fees and offers better exchange rates. Customers pay a small, transparent fee for each transaction, and Wise also offers a multi-currency account for managing funds in various currencies. The company aims to maintain high performance and reliability while ensuring transparency and trust with its users.

London, United KingdomHeadquarters
2011Year Founded
$385.5MTotal Funding
IPOCompany Stage
Fintech, Financial ServicesIndustries
5,001-10,000Employees

Benefits

PTO & annual leave
Work from home flexibility
Parental leave
Medical insurance plans
Health & wellbeing discounts
Pension & retirement plans
Social events
Relocation support

Risks

Increased competition from banks integrating Swift services could challenge Wise's market share.
Regulatory scrutiny following Stenn's collapse may increase pressure on Wise.
Bitcoin's low transaction fees could attract customers away from Wise's services.

Differentiation

Wise offers a peer-to-peer system for low-cost international money transfers.
The company provides a multi-currency account for ex-pats, freelancers, and travelers.
Wise's transparent fee structure attracts customers seeking cost-effective money transfer solutions.

Upsides

Partnership with Morgan Stanley enhances Wise's cross-border settlement capabilities.
Expansion into India's remittance market presents significant growth opportunities for Wise.
API integrations offer additional revenue streams and market penetration for Wise.

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