SFTR Lead Business Analyst

About this role

We’re partnering with a leading global hedge fund to enhance and optimise its Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR) reporting framework.
The firm already has a mature SFTR reporting process and supporting infrastructure in place. It is now seeking an experienced SFTR specialist to take end-to-end ownership of the obligation while managing the associated change portfolio. The successful candidate will act as the firm’s principal subject-matter expert for SFTR, ensuring the continued accuracy, completeness and timeliness of its reporting and maintaining clear traceability from the regulation through to its operational and technical implementation.
This is a hands-on role combining regulatory interpretation and BAU oversight with business analysis, data investigation, testing and continuous improvement. It is based full-time in the firm’s London office.
Key Responsibilities

• Take end-to-end ownership of the firm’s SFTR reporting obligation, covering repo, securities lending and margin lending activities

• Maintain a detailed understanding of the regulation and its implementation, including individual reporting fields, eligibility logic, data sourcing, enrichment rules and vendor mappings

• Act as the firm’s primary point of contact for all matters relating to the current SFTR implementation and future regulatory or industry changes

• Conduct horizon scanning and assess the potential impact of regulatory developments on the firm’s reporting framework, processes and controls

• Maintain clear, auditable traceability from the underlying regulation through to business requirements, data mappings, controls and technical implementation

• Oversee daily BAU reporting metrics, proactively identifying exceptions, breaks and emerging risks

• Ensure that aged exceptions remain within the firm’s risk appetite, escalating promptly where exposures or control failures fall outside agreed tolerances

• Advise Regulatory Operations on questions and issues arising through BAU reporting, working closely with Operations, Compliance, Technology and Front Office stakeholders

• Coordinate complete, accurate and timely responses to regulatory enquiries in partnership with Compliance

• Respond to SFTR-related questions from counterparties, trade repositories and other internal and external stakeholders

• Assess new products and business activities to determine their SFTR impact, coordinating any required analysis, implementation and testing

• Lead SFTR reporting change from initial analysis through to implementation, including requirements gathering, Jira documentation, test-case creation, testing, UAT and post-production validation

• Analyse data flows, field mappings and enrichment processes to identify data-quality issues, control gaps and opportunities for improvement

• Perform hands-on data investigation and root-cause analysis, partnering with Technology and Operations to define and implement sustainable resolutions

• Validate SFTR data sourcing, transformation and lifecycle-event logic against the applicable reporting requirements and technical standards

• Identify and deliver improvements based on BAU metrics, Compliance input, assurance findings and regulatory feedback

• Engage with trade repositories, including DTCC, UnaVista and REG-IS, and liaise with regulators where required

• Contribute to the development of the firm’s target-state SFTR roadmap, with a focus on control maturity, automation and exception reduction
Requirements

• Extensive practical knowledge of SFTR and direct experience supporting or owning an SFTR reporting obligation within a hedge fund, investment bank, trading firm or comparable capital-markets environment

• Detailed understanding of SFTR reporting fields, eligibility rules, data mappings, lifecycle events and reconciliation requirements

• Previous experience acting as an SFTR subject-matter expert, obligation owner, Lead Business Analyst or Change Manager

• Strong understanding of repo, securities lending and margin lending products and their associated transaction lifecycles and data models

• Proven experience overseeing BAU regulatory-reporting metrics, exceptions and risks within defined operational and regulatory tolerances

• Experience responding to regulatory, compliance, assurance, counterparty or trade-repository enquiries

• Strong business-analysis and change-delivery capabilities, including requirements documentation, Jira management, test-case creation, UAT and post-production validation

• Hands-on data-analysis experience, including SQL querying, exception investigation and control testing

• Familiarity with trade repositories and relevant reporting standards and formats, including ISO 20022 XML, UTI, LEI and ISIN

• Experience assessing the regulatory-reporting impact of new products or business activities

• Demonstrable experience delivering sustainable process and control improvements within Regulatory Operations

• Excellent stakeholder-management and communication skills, with the confidence to engage senior stakeholders, counterparties, trade repositories and regulators

• A strong sense of ownership, accountability and attention to detail, with the ability to operate as the firm’s principal SFTR specialist

• London-based and prepared to work five days per week in the office
Benefits
Length: Initial 12-month contract