About iwoca

We started in 2012, when we noticed a problem: on average, it was taking eight weeks (and a lot of paperwork) for small businesses to apply for a loan. Worse still, more often than not, that process was ending in a ‘no’.

We knew that bakeries, building firms, salons, and solicitors deserved better. They deserve to be able to grow – hire more hands, invest in stock, market themselves – without all the hold music and absurdly rigid criteria.

We’ve now been around for a decade, and in that time, we’ve:

• grown to a team of 290 iwocans
• worked with over 50,000 small businesses across the UK and Germany
• redesigned the whole business loan process from start to finish – our record is three minutes, 26 seconds.

It’s a good start, but it’s just the beginning. Our mission is help one million businesses who need us, so we still have a long way to go.

Here’s what we’ve learned about lending along the way:

• Technology is the way to change this space

From automated decisions to API integrations, tech has the potential to create the changes small businesses have been waiting for – so we can’t stop innovating.

• Embedded finance is the future

More and more, we’re reaching customers by embedding our loans within the apps and systems they use everyday. Our partners are people like neobanks, online marketplaces and accountancy software companies.

• Payments and credit are converging

Lots of small businesses struggle with cash flow; often getting invoices paid from their customers months after paying their own bills. Loans can help them pay these bills, but we also want to tackle the problem at its root by improving payment terms.

• New products are always possible

We’re working to create new loans of all shapes and sizes, and we’ve recently launched iwocaPay to help with these cash flow conundrums.

We work hard to make iwoca a place where everyone feels welcome - we want everyone to confidently be themselves. For us, diversity isn't an optional add-on. It's the thing that makes us great.

The role:

We are looking for an experienced Compliance Manager to take over leadership of the function.

Our philosophy on compliance is that the compliance team provides input, guidance and training on compliance-related questions and sets up processes to help the business monitor / ensure that we are compliant. As such we structure the team mainly as an advisory function, with ‘execution’ and day-to-day monitoring sitting with the respective teams (Operations, Marketing, etc.).

The role will report into the General Manager of the German business, with close interaction with our UK and Global compliance teams (Regulatory, FinCrime, Data & GDPR) as well as various business functions. The role will likely manage the German Quality Assurance function.

Day to day you will:

• Define a strategy that ensures you can effectively oversee iwoca complies with regulatory obligations, particularly in relation to data protection, privacy, marketing, debt collection
• Ensure that we have an effective compliance monitoring plan in place, set processes and oversee the effectiveness of our Quality Assurance team
• Support the business in dealing with GDPR requests and complaints from customers (ensuring effective policies and procedures are in place for the team to manage such requests)
• Manage the personal data inventory (GDPR Article 30 record)
• Work closely with our Acquisition team to ensure our marketing and communication materials and content are compliant - this will involve both providing guidance / training and reviewing some specific content
• Keep up to date with regulatory developments (both at EU and national level) affecting the business, advising senior management on their implications
• Ensure necessary policy and guidance documents are drafted and kept up to date
• Ensure effective compliance training is in place for all staff
  
   

Requirements

What we’re looking for:

As a rapidly growing fintech company iwoca is constantly innovating and exploring new ways of doing things. For example, we were the first SME Lender to set up an AIF structure to lend directly to German businesses (removing the requirement to work with a fronting bank). We’re looking for someone who feels comfortable in such an entrepreneurial environment, who can deal with ambiguity / complexity and provide constructive advice that allows the business to ensure it remains compliant whilst meeting its growth ambitions.

You will have:

• Gathered experience in a compliance role within a financial services firm. Really you will have experience working for a tech or fintech company, and a working understanding of the compliance implications of a lending business
• A strong understanding of German Federal Data Protection Act & GDPR
• Good knowledge of the relevant marketing and advertising laws and regulations
• Have the confidence and gravitas to engage with and challenge senior stakeholders whilst also enabling business development
• A motivation for professional development in this area and an ability to research new requirements and learn quickly as the business expands
• A proven ability to independently set clear priorities and prioritise workstreams whilst managing various stakeholders.
• Fluency in German and English

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Benefits:

We all enjoy:

• A smart, motivated and international team (we represent over 35 different nationalities)
• Every morning ’iwocans’ get fully stocked fridges with whatever is needed to strengthen them. There are snacks (both healthy and less healthy) for the whole day
• Once a year iwoca takes over a ski chalet in winter so that you and your team can ski (and work) for a week. During summer we are drawn to the sun.
• Access to the gym membership program
• Exclusive participation in the daily commute
• Our home is in a nice office in the heart of the big city. In Frankfurt in the beautiful Ostend, our London office is located centrally in Fitzrovia
• Company-wide training courses with internal and external speakers
• 26 days of vacation a year, plus all public holidays, plus a free day for your birthday
• A paid volunteer day that gives you the opportunity to invest time to support a charity of your choice.
• Additional vacation so that you can take more time to travel or study outside of your vacation entitlement.