Who We Are
Zilch is a payment tech company on a mission to create the most empowering way to pay for anything, anywhere. Combining the best of debit, credit and savings, we give our customers the option to earn instant cashback or spread the cost of pricier purchases, completely interest free and with no late fees. Pretty great, right?
We started in 2018 with a small team and a big dream - to make credit accessible to all. Since then, we've achieved double unicorn status and taken on more than 5 million customers. There are some exciting projects coming up and we’ve got big growth plans.
Want to join us?
About The Role
The Senior KYC Analyst is an operationally critical role within the KYC team, responsible for executing and maintaining Zilch’s core onboarding KYC, AML and CTF controls, overseeing enhanced due diligence, managing complex onboarding investigations, and mitigating financial crime risks across the customer lifecycle.
As a senior member of the team, you will act as a key escalation point for our outsourced onboarding operations (BPO), internal stakeholders including Compliance, Training, QA, Complaints, Customer Support, Fraud, Process improvement, Risk, Engineering. You will ensure robust KYC standards are maintained while balancing regulatory compliance with a seamless customer experience.
This role requires strong analytical capability, sound judgement, and the confidence to challenge the status quo and propose better ways of working. You will be instrumental in reviewing high-risk customers (PEPs and Sanctions matches), completing SARs where required, identifying process gaps, and driving continuous improvement across onboarding and verification processes.
Day‑to‑day Responsibilities
Customer Due Diligence & Risk Assessment
- Review and assess complex KYC cases escalated by the BPO and internal teams.
- Review and assess KYC cases and communicate directly with customers when additional documentation or clarification is required.
- Analyse customer accounts, transactional behaviour, and submitted documentation to identify potential financial crime risks.
- Conduct detailed reviews of PEP, Sanctions.
- Perform enhanced due diligence (EDD) on high-risk customers.
- Make clear, well‑documented risk‑based decisions in line with regulatory requirements.
- Prepare and submit Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) where appropriate.
BPO Co‑Ordination
- Oversee the BPO’s KYC activities, ensuring adherence to service‑level agreements (SLAs) and KYC KPIs.
- Collaborate with the BPO to resolve escalated issues and provide guidance for handling intricate cases.
- Review and provide feedback on BPO case performance, escalating any concerns to the KYC Manager.
Cross‑Functional Stakeholder Collaboration
- Support internal stakeholders (QA, Complaints, CS, Fraud, Operations) with KYC‑related queries and risk decisions.
- Escalate verification or technical issues to Onfido and liaise to ensure timely resolution.
- Partner with Engineering to elevate account issues, system gaps, and workflow improvements.
Process Improvement & Governance
- Drive the creation of new KYC and EDD processes in response to emerging risks or regulatory changes.
- Review and update existing onboarding and verification procedures to improve efficiency and control effectiveness.
- Identify trends, root causes, and operational weaknesses within onboarding flows.
- Provide structured feedback to BPO partners to improve quality and decision accuracy.
- Support internal audits and regulatory reviews by ensuring accurate case documentation and audit trails.
Analysis, Reporting & Insight
- Provide clear analysis and insights from account investigations to support wider financial crime strategy.
- Identify emerging risk trends across onboarding, verification failures.
- Translate case insights into actionable recommendations to reduce financial crime exposure and operational friction.
- Track and monitor key KYC metrics, quality indicators, and escalation trends.
- Contribute to management reporting on high‑risk cases, SAR submissions, and onboarding risks.
- Prepare weekly and monthly reports on KYC performance, including key metrics.
What We’re Looking For
- 3+ years’ experience in onboarding KYC, AML or Financial Crime operations within financial services or fintech.
- Strong knowledge of AML, CTF, sanctions and PEP regulatory frameworks.
- Experience handling Enhanced Due Diligence and high‑risk customer reviews.
- Experience working with identity verification tools (eg. Onfido, Experian, GBG) and case management systems.
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to identify fraud patterns and process gaps.
- Advanced Microsoft Office skills; experience with BI tools (e.g. Looker) advantageous.
- Experience managing escalations and collaborating cross‑functionally with internal and external teams.
- High attention to detail with strong documentation and audit‑readiness standards.
- Ability to operate independently with sound judgement and accountability.
- ICA, CAMS or equivalent financial crime certification preferred.
About You
- Curious and investigative – you naturally dig deeper and ask “why”.
- Comfortable challenging the status quo and proposing better ways of working.
- Self‑sufficient and confident working unaided on complex cases.
- Detail‑oriented with strong documentation discipline.
- Collaborative and pragmatic, able to balance compliance with customer experience.
- Calm under pressure when handling high‑risk or sensitive investigations and conversations.
Benefits
Compensation & Savings
- Pension scheme.
- Death in Service scheme.
- Income Protection.
- Permanent employees enjoy access to our Share Options Scheme.
- 5% back on in‑app purchases.
- £200 for WFH Setup.
Health & Wellbeing
- Private Medical Insurance including;
- GP consultations (video, telephone or face‑to‑face).
- Prescribed medication.
- In‑patient, day‑patient and out‑patient care.
- Mental health support.
- Optical, dental & audiological cover.
- Physiotherapy.
- Advanced cancer cover.
- Menopause support.
- Employee Assistance Programme including:
- Unlimited mental health sessions.
- 24/7 remote GP & physiotherapy.
- 24/7 helpline for emotional & practical support.
- Savings & discounts on everyday shopping.
- 1:1 personalised well‑being consultations.
- Gym membership discounts.
Family Friendly Policies
- Enhanced maternity pay.
- Enhanced paternity pay.
- Enhanced adoption pay.
- Enhanced shared parental leave.
Learning & Development
- Professional Qualifications.
- Professional Memberships.
- Learning Suite for e‑courses.
- Internal Training Programmes.
- FCA & Regulatory training.
Workplace Perks
- Hybrid Working.
- Casual dress code.
- Workplace socials.
- Healthy snacks.
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