Role: Lead Account Manager
Location: DACH Region (remote/hybrid)
Type: Full-time | Employee
Industry: Fintech / Financial Services / Regulated Environments
Reporting to: CEO
We’re a FinTech company reinventing high-risk-market payments with an integrated digital identity layer. Our team is expanding, and we are looking for a Lead Account Manager to be responsible for the entire merchant relationship lifecycle at Tantum AG. The role takes over qualified leads from sales, accompanies merchants through the full onboarding process – from documentation and KYB/KYC profiling to compliance case presentation – and remains the strategic point of contact after onboarding. This role is part of the First Line of Defence and is responsible for the operational implementation of regulatory requirements in merchant onboarding and ongoing account management. It supports the compliance function (Second Line) through structured support without replacing its independent control function.
As one of the first employees in this role, you will have genuine responsibility: building processes, developing the team and actively shaping the scaling of merchant operations at Tantum AG.
Key Responsibilities:
Merchant Onboarding and Compliance
• Full ownership of the onboarding process for all merchants assigned by sales.
• Employing a risk-based approach to merchant evaluation and classification
• Obtaining and reviewing all necessary documents (KYB/KYC, UBO, SoW/SoF) in accordance with SPG, SPV and EGG.
• Ensuring compliance with internal guidelines, directives and regulatory requirements in the onboarding and existing customer process
* Creation of detailed merchant risk and business profiles (SPG profiles) and final case presentation to the compliance department.
• Prompt identification, evaluation and fully documented escalation of anomalies or increased risks to the Compliance Officer or MLRO.
• Coordination with sales on additional requests to meet onboarding timelines.
• Close cooperation with compliance (including the MLRO) to ensure a regulatory-compliant onboarding and monitoring process
• Proactive support in the processing of compliance cases, including the preparation of information for internal audits and suspicious transaction reports
• Ensuring complete, traceable and auditable documentation of all onboarding and KYC-relevant steps
Trade fairs and market presence
• Representing Tantum at relevant trade fairs, industry conferences and networking events, particularly within the payments, FinTech and digital commerce sectors.
• **Build and maintain a professional network of merchants, partners, and industry experts to support growth and market intelligence.**.
Ongoing account management
• Primary contact person for all onboarded merchants in all matters following onboarding.
• Monitoring changes in the business model, company structure or risk profile; initiating EDD measures where necessary.
• Identification of upsell and growth potentials in co-operation with sales.
• Regular reporting on portfolio performance, risk indicators, and merchant satisfaction.
• Ongoing monitoring of merchant activities in relation to AML/CFT risks and initiation of measures in the event of anomalies
• Support in the identification and escalation of potentially suspicious activities to compliance (including preparation of SAR-relevant information)
• Support internal and external audits (e.g. FMA audits) by providing documentation and explanations
Process Development & Team Building
• Build and continuously evolve scalable onboarding workflows, templates, and documentation standards.
• Build and develop the account management function in line with the growing merchant portfolio, including recruiting, onboarding and mentoring team members.
• Definition of team structure, role profiles and performance standards in close coordination with the CEO.
• Identify bottlenecks in the merchant lifecycle and implement practical, scalable solutions.
Required Skills:
• Expert knowledge in AML/KYC and compliance, applicable to complex onboarding situations and high-risk merchant sectors.
• Proven ability to analyse complex corporate structures, ultimate beneficial ownership (UBO) chains, trust structures and cross-border entities.
• Strong relationship management skills combined with commercial thinking.
• Ability to manage multiple cases and accounts concurrently without a drop in quality.
• Clear communication – both when presenting compliance findings to internal stakeholders and in challenging discussions with external partners.
• Builder mentality – arguably in a growing environment where processes are still being developed.
• Excellent collaboration skills, primarily in a remote setting
• German and English language proficiency
Required experience:
• At least 5 years of experience in account management, client onboarding or compliance with a regulated financial institution, e-money institution or payment service provider.
• Proven experience with merchants from complex or high-risk industries, including at least one of the following: Adult Content / Creator Platforms, Crypto / Web3, E-Commerce / SaaS, Fiduciary and Corporate Services.
• Direct experience of presenting compliance cases or risk assessments to internal compliance or risk functions.
• Proven ability to build or scale account management processes within a compliance-intensive environment.
• Knowledge of the Liechtenstein, European or EEA regulatory framework (SPG, EGG, PSD2, GDPR) is a clear advantage.
• German – C1 (native speaker preferred) | English – C1
What we offer:
• Competitive salary with performance-related bonus.
• Remote/hybrid flexibility – work where you are most productive.
• Training budget and support for attending trade shows and industry conferences.
• A role offering genuine ownership within a rapidly expanding FinTech company – you'll be building something, not just overseeing it.
• Direct access to the management level and short decision-making paths.
If the above sounds a lot like you, please send your CV to job@tantumpay.com.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.