Chief Internal Auditor

About

In May 2025, Equals Money and Railsr, two established fintech innovators with complementary strengths, came together. This strategic merger unites Equals’ proven expertise in currency and payments with Railsr’s powerful embedded finance and card-issuing technology. Together, we’ve created a next-generation financial services platform with the scale, infrastructure, and agility to serve customers across industries and borders.

Backed by regulated infrastructure and advanced payments technology, we’re delivering seamless, scalable solutions with the personal service and trusted experience our customers rely on.

Role Overview

As the Chief Internal Auditor, you will be responsible for providing independent assurance to the Audit Committee and the Board of Directors that our risk management, governance, and internal control processes are effective. You will oversee and lead the internal audit strategy and execution, ensuring the function remains objective, compliant with industry standards, and aligned with regulatory requirements.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop, execute, and continually refine the Internal Audit plan based on regulatory requirements, risk assessments and business priorities.

• Provide independent and objective evaluations of financial, operational, regulatory, and compliance risks.

• Compile and maintain a comprehensive and current risk-based Audit Universe, representative of the group’s operations and processes and adequately categorised to reflect the areas in which assurance is provided.

• Plan and carry out internal investigations on suspected fraudulent activities, and provide reports and recommendations to the Audit Committee

• Carry out whistleblowing investigations and provide reports and recommendations to the Audit Committee.

• Report directly to the Audit Committee on key findings, audit outcomes, emerging risks, and control deficiencies.

• Ensure full compliance with applicable regulatory standards (e.g., FCA, PSR, PRA, SM&CR) and IIA Standards.

• Lead, develop, and manage the internal auditor team or coordinate with outsourced/co-sourced audit partners.

• Act as a key advisor to senior leadership and the Board on matters of governance, risk, and control.

• Liaise with external auditors, regulators, and other assurance providers as necessary.

• Champion a culture of compliance, ethical conduct, and continuous improvement across the business.

• Monitor industry developments, emerging risks, and changes to regulatory frameworks impacting payments.

Requirements

Essential:

• Qualified accountant or auditor (e.g., ACA, ACCA, IIA, CIA) with significant experience in internal audit.

• Proven leadership experience in a senior internal audit role, preferably within financial services or payments.

• Deep understanding of UK regulatory environment including FCA Handbook, SM&CR, and Payments regulations.

• Strong knowledge of enterprise risk management, internal control frameworks, and auditing standards.

• Familiarity with technology audits (e.g., cyber risk, operational resilience, ITGCs).

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, including reporting to the Board/Audit Committee.

• Demonstrated independence, integrity, and sound judgment.

• Understanding of ISO/IEC standards or other relevant assurance frameworks.

Desirable:

• Experience in a scale-up, fintech, or high-growth regulated payments firm.

• Experience in a private equity backed firm.