Chief Operating Officer

Harper May is partnering with an established, London-based specialist financial services firm that provides market infrastructure to institutional participants in regulated international markets. The business is owner-led, profitable, long-established and operates globally through a network of counterparties across the UK, the Middle East and Asia. A Chief Operating Officer is being appointed to run the firm day to day alongside the senior leadership team and take ownership of the operational engine across the business.

The Role
Reporting to the CEO and working closely with the senior leadership team, the COO will carry end-to-end responsibility for the operations of the firm. This is a hands-on executive seat rather than a strategy-only brief, suited to a senior operator who has run a regulated financial services or market infrastructure business before and is comfortable owning the P&L of operations, technology, risk and compliance in a lean, high-trust environment.

Key Responsibilities

Own the day-to-day running of the firm's operational, technology and support functionsLead the operations, trade support, settlement and client services teams across the groupPartner with the CEO and the leadership team on strategy, commercial priorities and the firm's growth planOversee the risk, compliance and regulatory agenda across UK and international entitiesDrive operational efficiency, process automation and the ongoing technology roadmapRepresent the firm at senior counterparty, regulator and client levelLead, develop and build out the operational leadership teamOwn the operating budget, cost base and capital allocation for the functions in scopeSupport board reporting on operational performance, risk and controls

What we are looking for

Proven COO, Deputy COO or Head of Operations track record inside a regulated financial services firm, market infrastructure business, broker-dealer, asset manager, trading firm or similarStrong operational, technology and risk management credentialsComfortable operating across multiple jurisdictions and multiple entitiesCredible at CEO and board level, with a track record of building and leading operational teamsCommercial, pragmatic and genuinely hands-on; the firm runs lean and the role goes with itPrior experience in Islamic finance, international wholesale markets, commodities or a similar specialist environment is a plus but not essentialBased within a comfortable commute of central London; office-first culture