Head of Risk UK
The Head of Risk will be the accountable risk leader for the UK entity, responsible for ensuring that all material risks affecting UK clients, regulatory posture, and operational resilience are identified, assessed, monitored, and reported effectively. This is a broad role covering financial risk (excluding direct dealing oversight), operational risk, conduct risk, and third party/outsourcing risk.
A defining characteristic of this role is its operating model. Many core risk functions are delivered by the Group Risk team on an outsourced or shared services basis. The Head of Risk does not need to build and staff every capability locally. Instead, they must be skilled at managing outsourced service delivery: defining what the UK entity requires, holding Group Risk accountable for quality and timeliness, identifying gaps or conflicts between Group delivery and UK regulatory obligations, and escalating where service levels or outputs fall short.
This creates a dual mandate. The role holder must be a credible, senior risk professional who can engage substantively with risk content (frameworks, stress tests, MI, regulatory submissions). They must also be an effective governance operator who can manage intra group outsourcing relationships with the same rigour the FCA would expect for any outsourced critical or important function.
The role reports directly to the UK CEO with a functional dotted line to the Group CRO. The Head of Risk will be the primary risk voice in UK governance forums and the lead point of contact for FCA supervisory engagement on risk matters.
Responsibilities
Own the UK enterprise risk management framework end to end, ensuring it is proportionate, current, and aligned with FCA expectations under SYSC, PRIN, and Consumer Duty
Maintain the UK Risk Register with clear ownership, assessment methodology, defined review cycles, and escalation triggers
Own the UK risk management framework and RAS, translating Group risk appetite into UK specific decision boundaries that reflect local regulatory constraints
Provide independent 2nd line oversight and challenge to 1st line risk owners across operations, technology, client services, and commercial functions (excluding dealing, which reports separately)
Act as the intelligent client for risk services delivered by the Group Risk team, including but not limited to: market risk monitoring, credit/counterparty risk assessment, quantitative risk modelling, stress testing, and risk MI production
Define and document what the UK entity requires from Group Risk in terms of scope, quality, timeliness, and regulatory standard, formalised through an intra group service level framework or equivalent
Monitor and challenge the quality and completeness of Group Risk outputs before they are used in UK governance forums, board packs, or regulatory submissions
Identify gaps between Group Risk delivery and UK specific regulatory requirements, and escalate where those gaps create risk to the UK entity’s compliance posture
Maintain an outsourcing risk assessment for Group Risk services consistent with FCA expectations for oversight of outsourced critical or important functions under SYSC 8
Ensure that the UK entity retains sufficient knowledge and capability locally to oversee outsourced risk functions, avoiding inappropriate dependency on Group without independent local scrutiny
Lead or substantively oversee the UK ICARA (Internal Capital Adequacy and Risk Assessment) process, coordinating with Group Risk and Group Finance on stress testing, scenario analysis, and capital/liquidity adequacy
Ensure market risk, credit/counterparty risk, and concentration risk are monitored and reported to a standard that meets MIFIDPRU requirements, whether produced locally or by Group
Integrate conduct risk assessment into product governance, pricing decisions, and client outcome monitoring in line with Consumer Duty (PRIN 2A)
Oversee operational risk including business continuity, IT resilience, and third party risk, ensuring the UK entity maintains visibility even where platforms and infrastructure are managed at Group level
Deliver risk MI to the UK Board, UK ExCo, and relevant governance committees on a defined cadence, with clear narrative on trends, near breaches, breaches, and required actions
Own and maintain Key Risk Indicators (KRIs) across all material risk domains, each with predefined thresholds and mandatory escalation actions
Prepare risk sections for board packs, regulatory returns, and FCA supervisory engagement materials
Critically assess risk MI received from Group Risk before presenting to UK governance forums, ensuring it accurately reflects UK specific exposures and is not simply a Group level aggregation
Act as the primary point of contact for risk matters with the FCA during supervisory interactions, skilled persons reviews, and thematic exercises
Maintain effective working relationships with the Group CRO and Group Risk team, balancing collaborative alignment with independent challenge where UK interests diverge from Group priorities
Collaborate with the Head of Compliance (SMF16/17) to ensure clear delineation of 2nd line responsibilities with no gaps or duplication
Engage with internal and external auditors on risk related findings, ensuring timely remediation and structural fixes
Build the UK risk function progressively as the office grows, identifying where local capability is needed versus where Group delivery remains appropriate
Embed a risk aware culture across the UK office through training, practical challenge, and visible engagement with 1st line teams
UK Risk Accountability and Framework Ownership
Outsourced Risk Service Management
Regulatory, Prudential, and Conduct Risk
Reporting and Management Information
Stakeholder Engagement
Team and Capability Building
Requirements
Substantial experience (typically 8+ years) in risk management within FCA regulated financial services, with demonstrable exposure to CFD, spread betting, or leveraged derivatives businesses
Deep working knowledge of FCA regulatory expectations for risk management under SYSC, PRIN, Consumer Duty (PRIN 2A), and MIFIDPRU prudential requirements
Proven experience managing outsourced or shared service risk functions, including defining service requirements, monitoring delivery quality, and escalating shortfalls. This is a critical differentiator for this role
Experience designing and operating enterprise risk frameworks including risk registers, risk appetite statements, KRI frameworks, and ICARA/ICAAP processes
Strong understanding of financial risk (market, credit/counterparty, liquidity), operational risk, and conduct risk in the context of a retail leveraged trading platform
Experience preparing and critically reviewing risk MI for boards and senior governance forums, including the ability to identify where MI masks underlying issues
Experience engaging with the FCA in a supervisory context, whether directly or as a substantive contributor to supervisory dialogue
Understanding of the 3 lines of defence model and comfort operating independently within a structure where many 2nd line services are delivered centrally by a Group function
Strong governance instincts: the ability to distinguish between aligned Group support and inappropriate delegation of UK regulatory accountability
Experience with FCA expectations for oversight of outsourced critical or important functions under SYSC 8 and the FCA’s broader outsourcing and third party risk guidance (FG16/5)
Experience with CASS client money and asset requirements, particularly CASS 7 and CASS 6 audit processes
Familiarity with the Complaints, Claims, and Indemnity (CCI) regime under PS25/20
Professional qualifications: IRM Certificate/Diploma, FRM, PRM, or equivalent
Experience within a multi entity group structure where local regulatory obligations must be balanced against Group efficiency and standardisation pressures
Proficiency with risk analytics tools including Python/R for quantitative analysis and Tableau for risk dashboards
Desirable