Assistant Controller

Our mission

We're making Africa the first cashless continent.

In 2017, over half the population in Sub-Saharan Africa had no bank account. That's for good reason-the fees are too high, the closest branch can be miles away, and nobody takes cards. Without access to financial institutions, people are forced to keep their savings under the mattress. Small business owners rely on lenders who charge extortionate rates. Parents spend hours waiting in line to pay school fees in cash.

We're solving this by building financial services that just work: no account fees, instantly available, and accepted everywhere. In places where electricity, water and roads don't always work, you can still send money with Wave. In 2017, we launched a mobile app in Senegal for cash deposit, withdrawal, and peer-to-peer and business payments. Now, we have millions of users across 9 countries and are growing fast.

Our goal is to make Africa the first cashless continent and that's where you come in...

How you'll help us achieve it

We’re looking for a Finance professional who’s resourceful, organised, and proactive about getting things done. You'll be responsible for helping develop and maintain an effective financial and accounting unit as we rapidly scale our business in Niger.

In this role, you'll:

• Represent the Finance unit towards external stakeholders:
• Review and monitor company financial transactions
• Comply with financial, legal, and regulatory requirements by studying existing and new legislation, enforcing adherence to requirements, and advising on needed actions.
• Maintain accounting controls by preparing and recommending policies and procedures.
• Manage the external auditor relationship and ensure the organisation is compliant with accounting standards
• Oversee the Finance team:
• Recruit, train, mentor, and develop staff.
• Interact with Product Managers to ensure new products are correctly designed from both accounting and tax perspectives
• Lead by living Wave's values, and ensure they're deeply ingrained within your team.

Key details

• Location: You'll work from our office in Niamey and may travel to field locations.
• Work authorisation in Niamey is required
• This is a permanent position
• Our salaries are competitive and calculated using a transparent formula. 
• We offer generous health insurance for yourself and your dependents
• We support working parents - we offer 26 weeks of  parental leave for mothers and 4 weeks for fathers, in addition to subsidised child care when they return to work
• Airtime reimbursement
• Free food and a beautiful office space

Requirements

• Master’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field.
• Minimum of 8 years of progressive experience across auditing, accounting, or corporate finance.
• Proven experience navigating financial reporting requirements and regulatory frameworks in Niger.
• Demonstrated track record of successfully managing and resolving statutory tax audits.
• Full professional fluency in both French and English (essential for regular collaboration with international, non-French speaking stakeholders).
• Exceptional time management, critical thinking, and analytical problem-solving capabilities.
• Strong interpersonal communication and leadership skills, with a proven ability to manage, mentor, and develop staff.
• Ability to lead by example while maintaining the highest standards of professional integrity, ethics, and dependability.
• Proven resilience and the ability to deliver high-quality results under pressure and within tight timelines.
• Executive-level written and verbal communication skills.
• Advanced proficiency in computer applications, particularly Microsoft Word and Excel.
• Prior experience within a reputable external audit firm is considered a distinct advantage.

You might be a good fit if you

• Possess robust technical accounting and advanced financial reporting skills.
• Are highly meticulous, detail-oriented, and consistently drive for operational excellence.
• Are a strategic thinker who is comfortable challenging the status quo to improve processes.
• Are strictly deadline-driven and excel at managing competing priorities.
• Are intellectually curious, creative in your approach to problem-solving, and view failures as opportunities for continuous innovation and growth.
• Demonstrate strong project ownership-acting with high autonomy while possessing the situational awareness to escalate critical issues when necessary.
• Are comfortable defaulting to proactive over-communication and cross-functional coordination.
• Know how to maintain absolute confidentiality and discretion when handling sensitive financial or corporate information.
• Adjust seamlessly to shifting priorities and fluid conditions while optimizing time management strategies.

Our team

• We have a rapidly growing in-country team in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Burkina Faso, The Gambia, Uganda, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Cameroon plus remote team members spread across the world.
• We're deeply passionate about our mission of bringing radically affordable financial services to the people who need them most.
• We foster autonomy for our employees. You'll own your projects at every stage, from understanding the problem to monitoring your solution in production.
• We raised the largest Series A in Africa in 2021. Our world-class investors, include Founders Fund, Sequoia Heritage, Stripe, Ribbit Capital, Y Combinator, and Partech Africa.
• We are on  Y Combinator's top companies by revenue.

How to apply

Fill out the form below, and upload a resume in English and a cover letter describing your interest in Wave and the role.

We review applications frequently and recommend that you apply to the role that most closely aligns with your skills, experience and career goals.

Wave is an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.