SMBC Group is a top-tier global financial group. Headquartered in Tokyo and with a 400-year history, SMBC Group offers a diverse range of financial services, including banking, leasing, securities, credit cards, and consumer finance. The Group has more than 130 offices and 80,000 employees worldwide in nearly 40 countries. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. (SMFG) is the holding company of SMBC Group, which is one of the three largest banking groups in Japan. SMFG's shares trade on the Tokyo, Nagoya, and New York (NYSE: SMFG) stock exchanges.
In the Americas, SMBC Group has a presence in the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Peru. Backed by the capital strength of SMBC Group and the value of its relationships in Asia, the Group offers a range of commercial and investment banking services to its corporate, institutional, and municipal clients. It connects a diverse client base to local markets and the organization's extensive global network. The Group's operating companies in the Americas include Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC), SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc., SMBC Capital Markets, Inc., SMBC MANUBANK, JRI America, Inc., SMBC Leasing and Finance, Inc., Banco Sumitomo Mitsui Brasileiro S.A., and Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Co., Ltd.
The anticipated salary range for this role is between $142,000.00 and $195,000.00. The specific salary offered to an applicant will be based on their individual qualifications, experiences, and an analysis of the current compensation paid in their geography and the market for similar roles at the time of hire. The role may also be eligible for an annual discretionary incentive award. In addition to cash compensation, SMBC offers a competitive portfolio of benefits to its employees.
Role Description
We're seeking a seasoned Middle Office leader to oversee end-to-end Trade Finance operational controls and lifecycle processes across Accounts Receivable (AR), Accounts Payable (AP)/Supply Chain Finance, Trade Loans, and Letters of Credit (LCs). This leader will drive process excellence, digitization/automation, and a high-performance team culture, ensuring resilient controls, timely settlements, accurate trade capture, and best-in-class client and front-office partnership.
Responsibilities
Operational Leadership & Governance
Own day-to-day Middle Office processes for AR, AP, Trade Loans, and LCs, including trade/transaction capture, verification, confirmations, collateral/eligibility checks, settlements, limit usage monitoring, and lifecycle events.
Establish and maintain strong control frameworks: break management, reconciliations, four-eye checks, maker-checker, etc.
Serve as escalation point for exceptions, complex structures, sanctions/query triage, and deal level specifics.
Partner with Front Office, Credit Risk, Compliance/Sanctions, Legal, Treasury, Technology, and Operations to deliver high-quality outcomes and timely issue resolution.
Process Improvement & Automation
Lead a continuous improvement roadmap
Sponsor and deliver automation (e.g., workflow orchestration, RPA, straight-through processing, API integrations, OCR/IDP for docs, smart checklists, dashboards).
Define and track KPIs/KRIs; implement dashboards for real-time ops health (e.g., SLA adherence, break rates, aged items, etc)
Risk, Controls & Regulatory Alignment
Oversee audit readiness and responses (internal/external), remediation plans, and control testing
Embed data governance and documentation standards for trade records, amendments, collateral, and settlements.
People Leadership & Talent Development
Manage and develop a multi-level team; coach managers/leads, build succession, and drive engagement.
Establish a robust training curriculum across trade products, documentation, compliance, and systems; implement performance-based objectives.
Foster a culture of accountability, inclusion, continuous learning, and psychological safety to support change adoption and excellence.
Qualifications and Skills
10-15+ years in Trade Finance/Middle Office/Operations within a bank or non bank financial institution, including leadership of multi-disciplinary teams.
Deep product expertise in AR/AP financing, Trade Loans (including import/export loans), and Letters of Credit (issuance, advising, confirmation, negotiation, reimbursement).
Proven track record delivering process reengineering and automation (e.g., workflow tools, RPA, OCR/IDP, APIs, STP).
Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and executive reporting skills.
Additional Requirements
SMBC's employees participate in a Hybrid workforce model that provides employees with an opportunity to work from home, as well as, from an SMBC office. SMBC requires that employees live within a reasonable commuting distance of their office location. Prospective candidates will learn more about their specific hybrid work schedule during their interview process. Hybrid work may not be permitted for certain roles, including, for example, certain FINRA-registered roles for which in-office attendance for the entire workweek is required.
SMBC provides reasonable accommodations during candidacy for applicants with disabilities consistent with applicable federal, state, and local law. If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application process, please let us know at accommodations@smbcgroup.com.
EOE, including Disability/veterans
In the Americas, SMBC Group has a presence in the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Peru. Backed by the capital strength of SMBC Group and the value of its relationships in Asia, the Group offers a range of commercial and investment banking services to its corporate, institutional, and municipal clients. It connects a diverse client base to local markets and the organization's extensive global network. The Group's operating companies in the Americas include Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC), SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc., SMBC Capital Markets, Inc., SMBC MANUBANK, JRI America, Inc., SMBC Leasing and Finance, Inc., Banco Sumitomo Mitsui Brasileiro S.A., and Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Co., Ltd.
The anticipated salary range for this role is between $142,000.00 and $195,000.00. The specific salary offered to an applicant will be based on their individual qualifications, experiences, and an analysis of the current compensation paid in their geography and the market for similar roles at the time of hire. The role may also be eligible for an annual discretionary incentive award. In addition to cash compensation, SMBC offers a competitive portfolio of benefits to its employees.
Role Description
We're seeking a seasoned Middle Office leader to oversee end-to-end Trade Finance operational controls and lifecycle processes across Accounts Receivable (AR), Accounts Payable (AP)/Supply Chain Finance, Trade Loans, and Letters of Credit (LCs). This leader will drive process excellence, digitization/automation, and a high-performance team culture, ensuring resilient controls, timely settlements, accurate trade capture, and best-in-class client and front-office partnership.
Responsibilities
Operational Leadership & Governance
Own day-to-day Middle Office processes for AR, AP, Trade Loans, and LCs, including trade/transaction capture, verification, confirmations, collateral/eligibility checks, settlements, limit usage monitoring, and lifecycle events.
Establish and maintain strong control frameworks: break management, reconciliations, four-eye checks, maker-checker, etc.
Serve as escalation point for exceptions, complex structures, sanctions/query triage, and deal level specifics.
Partner with Front Office, Credit Risk, Compliance/Sanctions, Legal, Treasury, Technology, and Operations to deliver high-quality outcomes and timely issue resolution.
Process Improvement & Automation
Lead a continuous improvement roadmap
Sponsor and deliver automation (e.g., workflow orchestration, RPA, straight-through processing, API integrations, OCR/IDP for docs, smart checklists, dashboards).
Define and track KPIs/KRIs; implement dashboards for real-time ops health (e.g., SLA adherence, break rates, aged items, etc)
Risk, Controls & Regulatory Alignment
Oversee audit readiness and responses (internal/external), remediation plans, and control testing
Embed data governance and documentation standards for trade records, amendments, collateral, and settlements.
People Leadership & Talent Development
Manage and develop a multi-level team; coach managers/leads, build succession, and drive engagement.
Establish a robust training curriculum across trade products, documentation, compliance, and systems; implement performance-based objectives.
Foster a culture of accountability, inclusion, continuous learning, and psychological safety to support change adoption and excellence.
Qualifications and Skills
10-15+ years in Trade Finance/Middle Office/Operations within a bank or non bank financial institution, including leadership of multi-disciplinary teams.
Deep product expertise in AR/AP financing, Trade Loans (including import/export loans), and Letters of Credit (issuance, advising, confirmation, negotiation, reimbursement).
Proven track record delivering process reengineering and automation (e.g., workflow tools, RPA, OCR/IDP, APIs, STP).
Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and executive reporting skills.
Additional Requirements
SMBC's employees participate in a Hybrid workforce model that provides employees with an opportunity to work from home, as well as, from an SMBC office. SMBC requires that employees live within a reasonable commuting distance of their office location. Prospective candidates will learn more about their specific hybrid work schedule during their interview process. Hybrid work may not be permitted for certain roles, including, for example, certain FINRA-registered roles for which in-office attendance for the entire workweek is required.
SMBC provides reasonable accommodations during candidacy for applicants with disabilities consistent with applicable federal, state, and local law. If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application process, please let us know at accommodations@smbcgroup.com.
EOE, including Disability/veterans