Merchant Underwriter

OTT Pay Group Inc. "(OTT Pay)" is a fully funded established FINTECH focused on delivering simplified financial payment products. With a strategic emphasis on both Acquiring and Issuing businesses, we are developing a mobile-first platform that offers straightforward banking services, loyalty solutions, and innovative products including credit cards, accounts, gift cards, mortgage, and more. We are goal-oriented, motivated by results, and forward-thinking. At OTT Pay, you will find numerous opportunities to learn and grow, alongside a cohort of talented individuals from diverse backgrounds and industries. Working collaboratively in an innovative environment, you will be encouraged to excel and make a meaningful impact. This presents a unique opportunity to join an organization committed to transforming financial solutions.

We are looking for a Merchant Underwriter to support our business growth. The Merchant Underwriter will join the Risk & Compliance Department, and reports to and gets direction from the Manager, Merchant Risk. The Merchant Underwriter will work with professionals in all departments to ensure compliance with policies and all necessary laws and regulations related to cards under the acquiring and issuing business model programs. You will also work with cross-functional teams such as Business Development, Compliance, Operations, Product, Technology, and Finance to deliver our business objectives in the following programs - Payment Facilitator Program; ISO Partner Program; Alternative Payment Methods' acceptance such as WeChatPay, AliPay, Union Pay International; software and Apps for merchants to create, manage, and provide electronic loyalty cards, loyalty rewards, coupons, gift cards, discount cards, promotions gift card and loyalty programs.

This is a full-time, permanent position working out of our Leslie Street Head Office in North York. #LI-Onsite

What's in it for you:

• Competitive salary
• Extended Health, Dental, and Vision Benefits
• Life and Disability Insurance
• Performance Bonus
• Paid Vacation Leaves
• Centrally located modern and spacious offices close to Eglinton and Leslie
• Free use of onsite Gym and Sports Facilities, and regular Company Social Events
• Learning and Professional Development Support
• A chance to work in a dynamic, collaborative, progressive and high performing team
• Community involvement through the annual Terry Fox Run
• Tremendous opportunities for Growth and Development

How you will contribute:

• Implement and execute all the elements of the merchant underwriting framework with a view to mitigating risks imposed by merchants to OTT.
• Maintain and update underwriting procedures and ensure that they are in line with the OTT Underwriting Policy.
• Recommend Policy amendments where required. Submit revised Policy for management approval.
• Evaluate risk & compliance activities and irregularities related to Underwriting; update, recommend and help to enforce policy.
• Maintain records of risk & compliance activities, gaps and corrective action plans.
• Remain abreast with risk management standards, regulations and card scheme changes in order to implement effective merchant risk mitigation controls.
• Collaborate with business development, finance, marketing and other operational support functions to define acceptable underwriting risk thresholds.
• Work closely with cross functional operational and IT teams to continuously upgrade, document and deploy merchant risk related system processes and regulatory and card scheme rule changes.
• Implements and monitors risk mitigation strategies across the entire merchant onboarding and management lifecycle process in order to reduce any adverse exposure originating at any stage of the relationship.
• Prepare Underwriting checklists using risk factor weightings, continuously recommending adjustments where needed.
• Writes and submits requests for information between the company and the merchant, ensuring that the communication is professional and represents the Company and ensures that responses are adequate.
• Responsibilities at both onboarding and ongoing review stages:
  • Verify that Merchants are PCI-DSS compliant.
  • Conduct assessment of merchant's history of chargeback and refund ratios, transaction volumes, average ticket size, delivery risk.
  • Conduct website content/URL or review third-party vendor's results.
  • Conduct credit and financial risk assessment for merchants.
  • Conduct reserves risk assessment and provides reserves rate to be applied and document the decision rationale.
  • Conduct risk assessment of merchants commensurate with its line of business or industry sector, type of medium used to sell its products or services, credit and financial risk, length of time in business, payment method accepted, along with other criteria used to assess the merchant.
  • Evaluate merchants by risk level ensuring that a scoring level of assessment is completed for merchants of different risk levels, i.e., complete a higher level of due diligence for a higher risk merchant.
  • Recommends exception-based approvals in accordance with policy, recording the risks involved to approve or to decline the exceptions.
• Ensure that all known risks are included in the risk assessments of merchants and continuously updated with new risks found.
• Implements and monitors fraud and risk prevention strategies to identify, prevent and mitigate possible merchant risk exposures, chargeback risks as well as prevent online and in-store fraud attempts.
• Conducts periodic review of merchant activity and updates processing performance by merchant, documenting all review analyses.
• Employs and continuously assesses vendor risk management tools for underwriting to maximize the results to increase efficiency.
• Develops and provides employee training on risk & compliance policies, practices, and reporting systems related to underwriting.
• Prepares and files risk & compliance reports of all activities, risks, action plans.
• Identifies, investigates, and reports risk & compliance issues, irregularities, and violations. Ensures that potential risks such as financial loss, material loss, fines and reputation in the market are identified and minimized.
• Standardizes business practices to ensure that company's activities are handled in an ethical and legal manner.
• Prepares for examinations.
• Tracks and responds to complaints related to merchant underwriting.

What you bring to the table:

• Min 2 years work experience as an Underwriter or Risk & Compliance Specialist or similar role
• Must have actual work experience in merchant acquiring, payment processing, or risk management
• Relevant training or certifications in Anti-Money Laundering or Financial Crimes with ACAMS, ACFCS or similar accredited organizations
• Bachelor's Degree in Business, Finance, or a related field
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills
• Excellent documenting and reporting skills
• Ability to work collaboratively with internal teams and external customers and vendors
• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

Visit our website at https://ottpay.com/.

OTT Financial Group is committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible environment where all employees feel valued and respected, and where every employee can realize their potential. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodation, if required, and will work with you to meet your needs. We appreciate all applicants for their interest; however, only those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.