Fintech competes for compliance talent against banks, payment firms and consultancies, and the demand sits firmly at the senior end. Government analysis of financial services recruitment found that hiring was generally for Regulatory Qualification Framework (RQF) level 6 and above, rather than the level 3 to 5 band GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report. In plain terms, RQF 6 maps to degree level or equivalent professional expertise.
That pattern matters when you size a first hire. The people you most need are also the people everyone else is chasing, so it pays to be clear about the role before you post it.
A first compliance appointment carries more weight than most early hires because it owns your relationship with the regulator and your risk framework. The sector skew towards senior roles reflects that: financial services recruitment leans towards RQF level 6 and above rather than level 3 to 5 GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report.
Three things shape the brief. First, your regulatory footprint: an authorised firm needs someone who can own permissions and reporting, while a pre-authorisation startup may need help building the application. Second, your product risk: lending, payments and crypto each carry different obligations. Third, your stage: a lean team needs a builder who writes policy and runs it, not a manager who only oversees.
Decide which of three shapes you need. An owner sets the framework and fronts the regulator. A builder writes the policies and the controls from scratch. An overseer monitors an existing framework and reports on it. Most first hires in a UK fintech need the owner and builder blend, because there is nothing yet to oversee.
Start with the obligations, not the title. Write down what the regulator expects of your firm over the year ahead, then map the skills that meet those obligations. Because financial services recruitment leans towards RQF level 6 and above rather than level 3 to 5, that brief tends to point to a senior person GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report. Mapping obligations to skills turns a vague senior hire into a concrete brief you can screen against.
Test for judgement, not just knowledge. Give a real scenario from your product and ask how the person would weigh the risk, document the decision and explain it to the board. Look for someone who can translate rules into controls your engineers can actually ship.
Since the market pulls towards senior candidates, move quickly and keep the process tight. A short, well-run process respects experienced people's time and keeps you competitive without cutting corners on due diligence.
When you are ready to move, we can help. Our recruitment agent manages recruitment end to end for 8% on a successful hire, with no monthly fee and no upfront cost, through Reed.ai. Tell us the obligations and the shape of the role, and we will build you a ranked shortlist to work from.
