Legal, Regulatory & Compliance Counsel

About this role

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WE ARE LOOKING FOR A LEGAL, REGULATORY & COMPLIANCE COUNSEL TO JOIN OUR LEGAL GROUP; AS WE SCALE UP AND DRIVE DIGITAL AND FINANCIAL INCLUSION ACROSS OUR MARKETS.

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HELP US BUILD AND SCALE RESPONSIBLY ACROSS WEST AFRICA.

M-KOPA is scaling digital and financial inclusion across our markets, and as we grow, so does the need to make sure we are building on strong legal, regulatory and compliance foundations.

This is a broad, hands-on role. You will sit at the intersection of legal, regulatory, compliance, risk, and business operations, helping teams navigate an increasingly complex regulatory environment while enabling the business to move forward confidently.

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WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING

You’ll be the go-to legal and compliance partner for our West Africa markets, helping M-KOPA understand what is changing in the regulatory landscape and what those changes mean for our business.

A significant part of your role will be keeping our operations compliant across Ghana and Nigeria. This will include supporting regulatory licensing and engagement with regulators such as the Bank of Ghana and Central Bank of Nigeria, managing relevant corporate and regulatory filings, and keeping track of emerging legislation that could affect our products and operations.

You’ll also play an important role in data privacy, acting as the Data Privacy Officer for our West Africa markets and working closely with our global privacy team to ensure we meet applicable privacy requirements and maintain good data governance practices.

Beyond responding to regulations, you’ll help us build a culture where compliance is understood and embedded in how we work. You’ll coordinate compliance training, support the development and review of policies and procedures, and help teams understand and manage compliance risks in their day-to-day work.

You’ll work closely with Legal, Internal Audit, EHS, Risk Management and other business teams to identify compliance gaps, understand root causes and make sure agreed actions are followed through. You’ll maintain key compliance tools, including the compliance obligations register, training calendar, incident register and compliance risk register.

The role also has a strong commercial legal component. You’ll draft, review and negotiate agreements with vendors, partners and technology providers, providing practical legal advice on contractual risk, product structures and business transactions.

You’ll support the governance of our West Africa entities as well, ensuring that board resolutions, statutory filings and corporate records are properly managed and that our Ghana and Nigeria entities remain compliant with applicable company and regulatory requirements.

As we work with external lawyers across the region, you’ll also manage our external counsel panel. This will involve instructing counsel, managing scope and fees, reviewing the quality of external legal work and ensuring we have the right legal support for our markets.

You’ll also contribute to investor compliance and ESG-related requirements, including supporting the implementation of our Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS) and investor reporting.

Ultimately, your role will be about helping M-KOPA spot legal and regulatory risks early, translate complex requirements into practical actions, and enable the business to grow responsibly.

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WHAT YOU’LL BRING

We’re looking for a qualified lawyer who enjoys working close to the business and is comfortable moving between legal advice, regulatory matters, compliance and commercial problem-solving.

- 5+ years of post-call legal experience, ideally with exposure to legal and/or compliance functions.

- An LLB degree and relevant professional legal qualification.

- Experience working with regulatory requirements, compliance programmes and risk management.

- Experience drafting, reviewing and negotiating commercial contracts.

- Experience engaging with regulators and navigating regulatory requirements.

- Exposure to banking, financial services, fintech or structured finance/capital markets would be an advantage.

- Strong legal research and analytical skills, with the ability to understand how changes in legislation affect the business.

- Strong attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple priorities across different markets.

- A practical, commercial approach to legal advice. You should be comfortable explaining complex legal or regulatory issues in a way that business teams can act on.

- Strong communication and collaboration skills, particularly when working across different teams, cultures and markets.

- A structured and organised approach to managing work, risks, deadlines and stakeholders.

WHY M-KOPA?

At M-KOPA, we empower our people to own their careers through diverse development programs, coaching partnerships, and on-the-job training. We support individual journeys with family-friendly policies, prioritize well-being, and embrace flexibility.

Join us in shaping the future of M-KOPA as we grow together. Explore more at m-kopa.com http://m-kopa.com.

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Recognized four times by the Financial Times as one Africa's fastest growing companies (2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026), named on CNBC's World’s Top Fintech Companies 2025 & 2026 and by TIME100 Most…