Finance Specialist

The Counterparty Risk and Compliance Analyst will play a crucial role in safeguarding UNICEF’s financial interests. Their responsibilities will include managing risks associated with financial counterparties, ensuring compliance with relevant regulations and internal policies, and actively assisting UNICEF Regional and Country Offices in implementing risk-informed FSP related aspects of cash-based transfers to beneficiaries, fundraising, and FSPs used for UNICEF operations. The deliverables will include risk identification, analysis, and mitigation, compliance oversight, control testing, and documentation of potential financial risks that could impact UNICEF. Additionally, the incumbent will provide technical assistance in selecting Financial Service Providers (FSPs), ensuring adherence to rules and regulations, policy modifications, procedural enhancements, and protection of financial resources. The Counterparty Risk and Compliance Analyst will collaborate closely with other units within DFAM, including the Banking and Payment Solutions Unit and the Financial Reporting Unit, as well as other teams across the organization.

How can you make a difference?

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

FSP Risk Mitigation Strategies and Compliance:

• Develop a practical system to periodically and systematically monitor the FSP risk mitigation action plans approved by DFAM Treasury to ensure compliance with UNICEF policies and procedures and with FSP approval conditions.
• Update the FSP approval conditions monitoring calendar, share monitoring tools and set compliance review appointments with Regional and Country Offices.
• Review Country Office submissions of approval conditions compliance and propose changes to the required evidence to be submitted to DFAM Treasury and conditions to strengthen compliance.
• Conduct comprehensive risk assessments to identify potential risks related to working with all types of counterparties impacting the programmes’ financial, operational, and regulatory aspects.
• Evaluate existing processes and systems to identify vulnerabilities and areas of improvement.
• Recommend risk mitigation strategies, policy changes, and procedures to minimise exposure to identified risks.
• Utilize data analysis tools to assess historical data and trends, enabling informed decision-making in risk management strategies.

Financial Service Provider Selection:

• FSP approvals: Review the business case from Regional and Country Offices for new requests and extensions of FSP approvals.
• Support the colleagues in the TSF Section conducting assessments of FSP’s financial health and credit risk to determine the likelihood that the FSP will continue as a viable business and safeguard UNICEF funds entrusted to them.
• Review FSPs’ terms of reference / contractual agreements and risk assessments.
• Support the drafting of recommendations for the approval/not approval of FSPs by the Treasurer
• Help maintain UNICEF pertinent legal documentation for the unit, such as service agreements between UNICEF and the financial service providers and liaise with UNICEF legal and procurement on contractual documents.

Knowledge Management:

• Build dashboards for easy reporting and monitoring of trends.
• Keep the DFAM Treasury SharePoint current and upload files to the respective libraries and maintain dashboards and trackers.
• Help capture new knowledge using a knowledge management system, including PowerBI, Excel, PowerPoint, Microsoft Visio, etc.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in Finance, Business, or Economics.
• A minimum of five (5) years of professional work experience in cash-based transfers, risk management, Audit, Finance, or banking, is required.
• Experience with payment methods for humanitarian programmes, such as cash-based transfers, is considered an asset.
• Experience working with Microsoft Excel spreadsheets, SharePoint and PowerPoint at an advanced level is required, and with PowerBI is highly desirable.
• Experience in working in a multi-cultural environment.
• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency is considered an asset.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is considered an asset.

Source: https://jobs.unicef.org/cw/en-us/job/570984