Malaysia Country Manager

Company Description

Wise is a global technology company, building the best way to move and manage the world’s money.

Min fees. Max ease. Full speed.

Whether people and businesses are sending money to another country, spending abroad, or making and receiving international payments, Wise is on a mission to make their lives easier and save them money.

As part of our team, you will be helping us create an entirely new network for the world's money.

For everyone, everywhere.

More about our mission and what we offer.

Job Description

We are looking for an experienced Country Manager to lead our business in Malaysia. This is not a traditional hands-off executive role.

Based in Kuala Lumpur, you will be responsible for Wise’s overall success in the country, enabling Malaysian customers to experience the best way to move and manage their money across borders. You will be expected to grow the business by orchestrating appropriate go-to-market strategies while also improving and expanding our product offering and customer experience.

Reporting to the Head of Southeast Asia Expansion, you will be in a regulatory accountable role and responsible for the governance of Wise’s Malaysia subsidiaries. You will represent us with key regulatory bodies, and act as the chief spokesperson for Wise in local media and public forums. You will partner closely with global and regional product, engineering, compliance, risk, marketing and operations teams to expand our presence in the market.

What will you be doing?

• Risk, Compliance & Subsidiary Governance

  • Entity Governance & Board Management: Serve as the CEO for Wise’s relevant licensed entity and as a Board Director, if needed, for Wise’s Malaysia subsidiaries. Direct and prepare local board materials, and ensure subsidiary governance standards meet both regulatory expectations and Wise’ global standards.

  • Regulatory Compliance Oversight: Own risk, compliance, and governance for our Malaysia entities, partnering with global Product, Risk, Compliance, and Legal teams to ensure absolute compliance with local regulations through robust product design, systemic controls, and oversight.

  • Corporate Structure Strategy: Evaluate and optimise Wise’ corporate structure in Malaysia, assessing impact on both local licensed operations and the wider Wise Group.

  • Regulator Relationships: Manage our key relationships with the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Securities Commission and any other relevant regulatory or government bodies. Lobby these organisations for progressive regulatory changes to achieve our mission.

  • Operational Resiliency: Collaborate with Risk and Compliance teams to develop, implement, and maintain robust Business Continuity Plans (BCP) to handle unexpected operational or systemic service disruptions in the local market.

  • Operational Leadership: Have oversight on the day-to-day operations of Wise in Malaysia. Guide strategy and provide cross-functional leadership to colleagues supporting Malaysia operations, many of whom are based in our regional or global offices.

• Commercial Growth & Product Delivery

  • Financial Partner & SLA Management: Lead commercial and operational negotiations with our partnersand the national payment network. Hold both external financial institutions and internal global service providers accountable to strict Service Level Agreements (SLAs).

  • Licensing Strategy & Acquisition: Proactively assess expansion roadmaps and future commercial strategies to identify regulatory licensing requirements; own and lead the end-to-end strategy, preparation, and application process for any new local licenses required to unlock and scale these opportunities.

  • Product Prioritisation & Execution: Collaborate closely with global product and engineering squads to prioritise and execute new product or feature launches.

  • Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy: Partner with Product and Marketing leaders to devise and execute the GTM strategy to grow our customer base in Malaysia including defining target audiences, refining positioning, and optimising acquisition channels.

  • Customer Experience Optimisation: Work closely with Servicing Operations leaders to ensure the end-to-end customer journey - from digital onboarding to payment speed - meets Wise's global standards and exceeds local expectations.

  • Brand Advocacy & Public Relations: Act as the chief public spokesperson for Wise in Malaysia. Partner with Public Relations, Government Relations, and Marketing teams to build brand awareness by participating in media interviews, public policy forums, customer meetups, and industry events.

  • Office Leadership & Culture: Play a leading role in the Malaysia office culture, talent attraction and retention along with relevant functional and People team leaders.

Qualifications

• You have a wealth of experience in Malaysia payments, fintech or related industries, ideally with direct experience in customer / revenue growth and market / product level ownership.

• Proven track record of directly liaising with the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) or other regulatory bodies. You have successfully navigated license applications, feature approvals, regulatory reporting, or audit remediations in Malaysia.

• Deep understanding of the Malaysian payment landscape, DuitNow, clearing rails, card networks, and payments & FX regulations. An established network within the Malaysian payment industry is preferred.

• Excellent professional English communication skills. You are highly comfortable presenting complex, technical concepts to regulators and external bank partners, as well as communicating with global internal stakeholders.

• A self-starter with a bias for action. You are low-ego and happy to roll up your sleeves to map processes, write business proposals, or investigate customer bugs yourself, alongside being a strategic thinker.

• Highly data-driven. You use precise data to make business decisions, define clear product metrics, and articulate growth opportunities.

• Experience leading/building a team and also able to influence without authority.

Additional Information

This role will give you the opportunity to:

• Choose your own path to success - you will have the freedom to define the vision and the responsibility for making it happen

• Gain international exposure - you will work with our teams in offices around the world and have the the opportunity to travel to our Regional HQ in Singapore or to our offices in Europe when needed

• Be a part of something special by helping Wise grow in one of the most exciting markets for payments

Key benefits:

• Flexible working - whether it’s working from home, school plays or life admin we get that flexibility is essential and you’re trusted to do the right thing and be responsible

• Paid annual holiday, sick days, parental leave and other leave opportunities

• 6 weeks of paid sabbatical after 4 years at Wise on top of annual leave

For everyone, everywhere. We're people building money without borders - without judgement or prejudice, too. We believe teams are strongest when they are diverse, equitable and inclusive.

We're proud to have a truly international team, and we celebrate our differences.

Inclusive teams help us live our values and make sure every Wiser feels respected, empowered to contribute towards our mission and able to progress in their careers.

If you want to find out more about what it's like to work at Wise visit Wise.Jobs.

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