Regulatory Counsel, Middle East

Airwallex

You will be based in either the United Arab Emirates or Israel, with responsibility for regulatory legal support across the Middle East. This role will focus on advising on complex regulatory issues relating to payments and financial services in key Middle Eastern markets, supporting both local activities and cross border product offerings.

You will support the build out and maintenance of our licensing and registration portfolio in the region by helping to implement appropriate measures and controls and working closely with Regulatory Compliance and other control functions.

You will be a valuable member of the global legal and compliance team and will have the opportunity to support a rapidly growing business and the management team to navigate an increasingly complex regulatory landscape. This dynamic role is ideal for someone who enjoys wearing multiple hats and solving complex issues and blockers for our clients, is detail oriented, willing to take on challenges and changes, obsessively curious and intellectually honest, thrives on taking actions and delivering impactful results, and aims to inspire and be inspired.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Be responsible for handling regulatory legal issues relating to our business in the Middle East, and for providing strategic advice to cross functional stakeholders relating to existing licences/registrations and potential future licence applications in key Middle Eastern markets.
• Monitor, report, and analyse trends and developments in payments and financial services regulation across the Middle East, actively identifying and anticipating changes that may impact business operations or strategic objectives.
• Partner closely with Product Legal, Regulatory Compliance, Risk and Financial Crime Compliance teams to ensure robust compliance with applicable laws and regulations in the region.
• Support local and global Product, Strategy, and Management teams and regional Commercial teams on new market entry and expansion of regulatory licence(s) in the Middle East, including regulatory mapping and licensing advice.
• Liaise with senior Airwallex stakeholders globally, providing timely, pragmatic regulatory legal advice and risk assessments on business initiatives impacting the Middle East.
• Manage external legal counsel and consultants in the region, ensuring high-quality, cost effective support aligned with Airwallex s business drivers and risk appetite.
• Leverage AI and other tooling to enhance the scale, efficiency and effectiveness of the Regulatory Legal team.
• Provide legal advice on Airwallex s regulatory compliance obligations with respect to ongoing regulatory compliance and submission of regulatory reports and filings in relevant Middle Eastern jurisdictions, partnering with the Regulatory Compliance team to support timely and accurate filings.
• Support government relations outreach to legislators and regulatory agencies in key Middle Eastern markets (e.g. central banks, financial services regulators and free zone regulators), helping to shape policy and regulatory approaches relevant to the business.