Global Sanctions Manager

About Airwallex

Airwallex is the AI-native financial operating system for a real-time, intelligent economy. More than 675,000 businesses, including McLaren Racing, Qantas, SHEIN, and TikTok, use us, directly or through our platform partners, to run their financial operations or build and monetize financial products of their own.

We started in Melbourne in 2015 to build the infrastructure global commerce runs on. We're the regulated backbone behind global payments: not by accident, but by design. A decade plus, 85+ licenses, and a financial infrastructure spanning North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.

We're co-headquartered in San Francisco and Singapore, with more than 2,300 people across 27 offices. We hire builders with founder-level energy, people who move fast with good judgment, dig in with real curiosity, and make calls from first principles rather than waiting to be told what to do. Read our operating principles to see it in full.

About the team

The Regulatory & Compliance Team at Airwallex is a global, collaborative function comprised of experts in their respective subject matters. We provide trusted guidance across the business, strengthen our regulatory and compliance framework, and promote a culture of compliance, sound risk management, and ethical conduct across Airwallex.

The Financial Crime Compliance (FCC) team is a strategically important second-line function, responsible for Airwallex’s Global AML/CTF and Sanctions frameworks. As Airwallex expands into new markets and deepens its engagement with regulators and financial institution partners, the FCC team helps manage complex financial crime risks across a growing global business.

What you'll do

As a Global Sanctions Manager, you will have the unique opportunity to drive high-impact global initiatives to ensure Airwallex successfully navigates the world of economic sanctions as the business and compliance function continue to scale. As a truly global company building cross-border financial infrastructure, sanctions compliance is a critical component to our long term success. Come join a team where you will see the immediate impact of your work.

Responsibilities:

• Act as a Sanctions Subject Matter Expert (SME) and serve as the ultimate second-line escalation point for highly complex, ambiguous sanctions matches, special investigations, and potential block-and-reject reporting.

• Own and maintain Global Sanctions procedures and provide effective second-line oversight of sanctions controls implemented by first-line teams.

• Compile management information and develop comprehensive dashboards to track the health and effectiveness of the sanctions compliance program.

• Assist in the maintenance, tuning, and optimization of sanctions screening technologies, list management systems, and case management platforms to ensure alerts are accurate and efficient.

• Partner with Risk Product teams to design, evaluate, and implement product-specific sanctions controls that align with global regulatory requirements.

• Monitor global sanctions and export-control developments, translating complex regulatory changes into practical, scalable control enhancements and delivering targeted training across the business.

• Deliver tailored sanctions training and written regulatory updates to Global Airwallex teams, covering alert adjudication, escalation procedures, and critical policy changes.

• Lead responses to banking partners and other external stakeholders on sanctions-related inquiries and due diligence reviews.
  
  

Who you are

We're looking for people who meet the minimum requirements for this role. The preferred qualifications are great to have, but are not mandatory.

Minimum qualifications:

• 7+ years of relevant experience, preferably at a fintech, payments company, or large financial institution specializing in sanctions.

• Demonstrated understanding of US sanctions and industry best practices pertaining to economic sanctions; knowledge of global regimes other than the US is a plus.

• Experience operationalizing sanctions controls in collaboration with technological teams, including experience managing lists.

• Strong project management skills and ability to multitask in a fast paced environment.

• Ability to understand and assess a wide variety of complex commercial transactions and products.

• Highly motivated self-starter, able to work independently while collaborating and coordinating as part of a global program.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to provide viable recommendations and solutions to audiences across different geographies.
  
  

Preferred qualifications:

• Juris Doctor, relevant Master's degree, and/or advanced specialized industry certifications (e.g., CGSS, CAMS)

• Experience assessing current sanctions frameworks and recommending enhancements to strengthen the program, including designing and scaling sanctions programs

• A history of interacting with external stakeholders such as regulators or financial institution partners on sanctions matters
  
  

Applicant Safety Policy: Fraud and Third-Party Recruiters

To protect you from recruitment scams, please be aware that Airwallex will not ask for bank details, sensitive ID numbers (i.e. passport), or any form of payment during the application or interview process. All official communication will come from an @airwallex.com email address. Please apply only through careers.airwallex.com or our official LinkedIn page.

Airwallex does not accept unsolicited resumes from search firms/recruiters. Airwallex will not pay any fees to search firms/recruiters if a candidate is submitted by a search firm/recruiter unless an agreement has been entered into with respect to specific open position(s). Search firms/recruiters submitting resumes to Airwallex on an unsolicited basis shall be deemed to accept this condition, regardless of any other provision to the contrary.

Equal opportunity

Airwallex is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity and anyone seeking employment at Airwallex is considered based on merit, qualifications, competence and talent. We don’t regard color, religion, race, national origin, sexual orientation, ancestry, citizenship, sex, marital or family status, disability, gender, or any other legally protected status when making our hiring decisions. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.