Cards Specialist

Cards Specialist - Nairobi, Kenya

Credable is transforming financial services in emerging markets with its best-in-class Digital Banking Platform. We help partners launch financial products by embedding them into digital channels their customers already use.

The result is a win-win-win for partners, customers, and Credable. Having deployed across multiple markets in Africa, we’ve proven our platform meets a critical need and is driving us toward our core objectives:

• Democratizing financial services by reaching over 500 million people.
• Becoming the most trusted source of data in emerging markets.

The Role

We are seeking an experienced and entrepreneurial Cards Specialist to take full ownership of the end-to-end development and launch of our new card-based product offering in Africa. Based in Nairobi, this is a highly cross-functional role requiring a deep blend of Product Management, Operations, Business Development, and Project Management expertise.

This role is critical to our product expansion strategy. You will act as the internal subject matter expert for all things cards—from issuer processing and scheme compliance (Visa/Mastercard) to operational flows and market commercialization. You will define the product vision, drive the technical integration with partners, ensure operational readiness, and support the go-to-market strategy to secure the product’s success.

Key Responsibilities

Product Ownership & Strategy

• Define the end-to-end product strategy, roadmap, and specifications for Credable’s new card-based solution, ensuring alignment with overall company objectives and market needs.
• Provide subject matter expertise on required features, regulations, and best practices around any technical and/or operational product requirements - guiding overall product development.
• Act as the core Product Manager, translating business requirements into technical user stories and working closely with engineering teams to manage the full product development lifecycle.
• Conduct in-depth market and competitor analysis to ensure the card product is differentiated, compliant, and positioned for maximum success in emerging markets.
• Identifying potential strategic opportunities based on Credable’s core competencies and partnerships built with processors and VISA/Mastercard - have the ability to identify potential product-market fit across our existing products and pipeline.
• Recognize and define features and capabilities to integrate into our core platform to strengthen our overall card and credit offering.
• Package the opportunities we have and the technology we are building into a cohesive, scalable offering for banks across our core markets.

Operations & Technical Execution

• Manage the technical integration process with payment processors, card schemes (e.g., Visa, Mastercard), and partner banks, serving as the primary liaison for all card-related technical and operational matters.
• Understand and identify operational capabilities that will give us a competitive advantage across the use cases we are launching.
• Own the end-to-end risk and fraud framework for all card products, including transaction monitoring rules, authorization controls, velocity and MCC limits, chargeback management, and scheme monitoring programs—working closely with Risk and Data teams to balance growth, losses, and compliance.
• Establish and document core operational procedures for card issuance, transaction processing, fraud monitoring, reconciliation, and dispute management.
• Lead all card scheme certification and program approval processes across processors, issuing banks, and card schemes (Visa/Mastercard), including audits, compliance reporting, tokenization approvals, and go-live readiness per market.
• Ensure all card product development and operations adhere to relevant scheme rules, regulatory requirements, and industry best practices.

Business & Project Management

• Lead the internal project management for the card product launch, coordinating deadlines, resources, and communication across multiple internal teams (Engineering, BD, Legal, Marketing).
• Work closely with the Business Development team to identify and engage potential partner banks, processors, and technology vendors critical to the product's success.
• Support the commercialization effort by providing subject matter expertise to sales and partnership teams, helping to define the value proposition and pricing strategy.
• Identify and advise on revenue opportunities between the various core players often involved in card schemes. Guide the company on where we have the ability to unlock additional revenue streams and what may be necessary to demonstrate our value in those areas.
• Own the commercial performance and unit economics of the card product line, including pricing strategy, interchange and FX revenue modeling, contribution margins, partner commercial structures, and overall P&L performance across markets.

Person Specification

Required

• 6-10 years experience with a significant focus on card products (debit, prepaid, credit).
• Deep, demonstrable understanding of the card ecosystem in Africa, including the roles of card schemes (Visa/Mastercard), issuers, acquirers, and issuer/payment processors.
• Understanding of credit propositions in general and how we can activate this in different ways in markets that have little to no credit penetration today.
• Essential experience working for a payment processor or card technology company in Africa (e.g., Network International, Paymentology, Onafriq, or similar).
• Prior experience working within the banking or financial services sector is highly desirable.
• Proven ability to own and drive the full product lifecycle from concept to launch (Product Management skills).
• Connections with key banks, BIN Sponsors, fintechs, teclos, and other channel partners to whom we can engage to drive further business
• Excellent project management and cross-functional leadership skills, with a track record of driving complex projects to completion.
• Based in Nairobi, or willing to relocate immediately.

Preferred

• Hands-on experience with technical integrations (APIs, web services) related to payment systems.
• Familiarity with regulatory frameworks governing card products and payments in East and West Africa, and emerging markets at large.
• Understanding of embedded finance and credit schemes currently on the continent that are largely driven through wallet schemes.
• Experience in a high-growth startup or FinTech environment.

Our Culture

As a company, we are guided by two core objectives:

• Democratising access to financial services by launching best-in-class products into channels that can reach more than 500 million people across our markets.
• Becoming the most trusted source of data in emerging markets.

At Credable, we are a fast-paced, high-performing team driven by a shared passion for building the future of banking and democratising access to finance across emerging markets. We are entering an exciting phase of hyper-growth, and we are looking for energetic, curious individuals who are passionate about our vision and eager to create value while driving innovation and growth in the markets we operate in.

Join us if you want to shape the future of banking! We believe in equal opportunities, we welcome applications from diverse backgrounds.