Job Openings at Central Bank Of Kenya

The Head of Payment Services Policy Development & Data Analysis is responsible for overseeing the development of policy that govern the National Payment Systems (NPS) as well as conduct research and analysis of the performance of the national payment systems.

Responsibilities

• Contribute as appropriate to the performance of National Payment Systems functions and to the overall achievement of CBK’s strategic objectives;
• Guide and support implementation of an integrated information management system for electronic submission and processing of NPS returns;
• Carry out research and analysis on emerging issues e.g. FinTechs;
• Continuously review and propose updates to NPS policy framework, law and regulations in line with international best practices;
• Identify new areas for inclusive financing and recommend actions for policy formulation;
• Coordinate all activities related to financial inclusion as well as sensitization and training on the new payment platforms;
• Monitor industry developments and continuously update NPS returns templates;
• Ensure timely submission of NPS returns and provide periodic standard analytical reports;
• Implement an integrated information system for electronic submission of NPS returns;
• Perform analysis and verification of payment data and update the statistics on the CBK website;
• Design consumer awareness programs;
• Overseeing training of staff in the Section to enable the staff perform in line with Bank guidelines;

Qualifications

• A degree in Business, Economics, Banking, Finance, Insurance, Law, Mathematics, Computer Science or related field of study;
• Possession of a Master’s degree in a related field of study is an added advantage;
• Possession of Professional qualification in a related field of study is an added advantage.

Work Experience

• Minimum of eight (8) years’ work experience in Banking Operations and Payment Systems, Financial Services, Economics, Accounting or similar operations, with five (5) years in a supervisory position.

Competencies

Technical Competencies

• Good knowledge of data analysis methods such as predictive analytics, mapping, collecting data from multiple data systems on premises and cloud-based data sources;
• Ability to perform effective querying involving multiple tables and sub-queries;
• Experience in using analytical concepts and statistical techniques- hypothesis development, designing tests, analyzing data and drawing conclusions;
• Experience building and leading quantitative analyses and response and risk models;
• Knowledge and understanding of banking laws and regulations as well as Central Banking operations;
• Experience working with large data sets and advanced analytical tools, programs and systems;

Behavioral/General Competencies

• Excellent leadership skills and people management skills; including performance management, coaching & mentoring;
• Good interpersonal skills with ability to build consensus, alliances and collaborative relationships with stakeholders;
• Strategic thinking, problem solving and decision making skills;
• Ability to demonstrate CBK’s core values.

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Job Purpose

The Head of National Payment Services, Policy and Oversight is responsible for monitoring operations of National Payment systems participants and ensure compliance to payment Services Policy rules and regulations. This role also requires demonstrated extensive hands on experience and with deep understanding of IT Security, risks payments identification, analysis and mitigation. This role ensures performance of payment systems in support of CBK’s overall objectives.

Responsibilities

• Advise on and formulate payment policy and Oversight revisions and innovations in line with the strategy of the Bank; and national and regional priorities;
• Ensure payment systems’ infrastructure meets international standards through assessment of payment systems against international standards (guided by principles of financial markets infrastructure (PFMIs) and the oversight policy framework;
• Ensure compliance of Kenya Electronic Payments and Settlement System (KEPSS) Operations with the KEPSS rules and procedures, National Payments System (NPS) laws, Policy regulations and circulars;
• Ensure compliance with CBK Act, NPS Act, NPS Regulations and Anti-Money Laundering (AML)/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) requirements by payment service providers;
• Conduct designation and revocation of payment instrument/systems as provided in the law;
• Coordinate offsite and onsite oversight of large value and retail payment systems and facilitate regional participation;
• Ensure and oversee implementation of responses to audit and risk management queries and implement recommendations;
• Guide and support the development of a risk management framework for payment systems and instruments;
• Review data requirements and relevant returns for approval to facilitate oversight of Payment Service Providers (PSPs);
• Review oversight reports prepared for management including the annual oversight reports, Financial Stability Investment Committee (FSIC) report , Financial Stability (FS) report, incident and other ad-hoc reports;
• Continuously review the operation manual and recommend updates on the policies and procedures based on international leading practices in banking systems;
• Work together with the legal team to pursue enforcement actions on payment systems policies and procedures;
• Contribute as appropriate to the performance of other functions and to the overall achievement of the CBK’s strategic objectives.

Qualifications

• A degree in Business, Economics, Banking, Finance, Insurance, Law, Mathematics, Computer Science or related field of study.
• Possession of a Master’s degree in related field of study is an added advantage;
• Possession of professional qualifications in related field of study is an added advantage.

Work Experience

• Extensive experience in fraud analysis and prevention, payments risk and security management including mobile payments risk management, data security risk management, enterprise risk management, ecommerce acquiring risk and risk monitoring.
• Minimum of ten (10) years’ work experience in Banking Operations and Payment Systems, Financial Services, Economics, Accounting or similar operations, with five (5) years in Senior Managerial Position.

Competencies

Technical Competencies

• Technical training and/or certification in IT security, risk management in payments and payment products, fraud analysis and prevention, law enforcement etc.;
• Sound knowledge and experience in payment systems implementation and oversight instruments such as:
  
  • Retail payment innovations
  • Retail payment systems e.g. card, cheque, Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), mobile payment processes, internet banking, Automated Clearing House (ACH) etc.
  • Large value payment systems and cross border payments
• Clear understanding of the national payments systems policy and regulatory framework as well as internationally accepted best practices for effective payments systems’ oversight including policies on AML, Know Your Customer (KYC) and other relevant policies/laws;
• Knowledge on payment systems policy formulation and analysis;
• Sound knowledge of on-site and off-site surveillance of payment systems;
• Conversance with payment systems risks and risk assessment frameworks including cyber risks;
• Experience in system performance monitoring;
• Aptness in research, data analysis, financial analysis and interpretation;

Behavioral/General Competencies

• Excellent leadership skills and people management skills; including performance management, coaching & mentoring;
• Good interpersonal skills with ability to build consensus, alliances and collaborative relationships with stakeholders;
• Strategic thinking, problem solving and decision making skills;
• Ability to demonstrate CBK’s core values.