Merchant Banking Operations Specialist

Join a movement in which everyone can win. We started a movement in which everyone can win - shoppers, retailers, society and every person on our team. To play fair, trust people and reward them for doing the right thing. We see and feel the impact of our work as more and more people gain financial freedom and retailers grow across the globe.
Founded in 2014, in Sydney, Australia, Afterpay has over 11 million active customers globally and more than 64,000 of the world's best retailers around the world including Anthropologie, Revolve, DSW, GOAT, Finish Line, Levi's, Mac Cosmetics, Ray-Ban and many others. Afterpay is on a mission to power an economy in which everyone wins.
Afterpay is completely free for customers who pay on time - helping people spend responsibly without incurring interest, fees or extended debt. Afterpay empowers customers to access the things they want and need, while still allowing them to maintain financial wellness and control, by splitting payments in four, for both online and in-store purchases. Afterpay is deeply committed to delivering positive outcomes for customers. We are focused on supporting our community of shoppers.
We trust in the next generation and share a vision of a more accessible and sustainable world in which people are rewarded for doing the right thing.
The Role
The Merchant Banking & Finance team safeguards merchant money movement and operational accuracy by handling exception workflows such as Direct Debit failures, Bank fails, payment arrangements/net-offs, bank detail changes, and refunds for terminated merchants (ZDO) in line with standard operating procedures and controls.
You Will

• Own end-to-end handling of merchant Direct Debit failures across scenarios (e.g., Afterpay Card fee debits, invoiced merchants): triage, root-cause identification, retries/re-presents, merchant comms, and escalations per SOPs.
• Manage Bank fails queues and repayments in coordination with Treasury and Merchant Experience, including preparing weekly eligibility lists and initiating/confirming repayments once issues are resolved.
• Set up and maintain Merchant Payment Arrangements and perform net-off of merchant balances where appropriate, ensuring accurate ledger impact and audit trail.
• Review and action Self-serve Bank Change requests; process and verify manual bank detail changes with appropriate approvals and controls (segregation of duties, evidence retention).
• Process ZDO refunds for terminated merchants, validating eligibility, documentation, and return-to-source requirements before payout execution.
• Partner with Treasury on shared workflows (e.g., weekly files, NZ direct debit retries, statement reviews) and contribute to automation/readiness activities where in scope.
• Maintain rigorous records in core systems; ensure SOP adherence, control compliance, and high-quality merchant communications across all cases.
• Identify process gaps, propose improvements, and help keep internal SOPs/current-state documentation up to date in partnership with Service Excellence and risk partners.

You Have

• Experience in payments operations, merchant banking, treasury operations, or financial operations within a technology/fintech environment, with exposure to direct debit exception management and reconciliations.
• Proficiency with operational tooling such as Zendesk, Salesforce, Admin Portal, spreadsheet workflows, and file handling (e.g., SFTP), with strong documentation hygiene and audit practices.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to translate complex banking issues into clear merchant updates and internal notes.
• Detail-oriented mindset with strong ownership, prioritization, and SLA discipline across multiple queues/time zones.
• Comfort collaborating with Finance/Treasury, Risk, Legal/Compliance, and Merchant Experience stakeholders on time-bound workflows and control sign-offs.

We're working to build a more inclusive economy where our customers have equal access to opportunity, and we strive to live by these same values in building our workplace. Block is a proud equal opportunity employer. We work hard to evaluate all employees and job applicants consistently, without regard to identity or other legally protected class. We believe in being fair, and are committed to an inclusive interview experience, including providing reasonable accommodations to disabled applicants throughout the recruitment process. We encourage applicants to share any needed accommodations with their recruiter, who will treat these requests as confidentially as possible. Want to learn more about what we're doing to build a workplace that is fair and square? Check out our I+D page .
Block is a globally distributed company and this role will require working with other employees in multiple time zones. You may be required to perform work outside of normal business as part of this role.
Application Guidelines
Candidates may submit up to 9 active applications within a 60-day period. Reapplications to the same role are accepted 90 days after a previous application has been reviewed.
Use of AI in Our Hiring Process
We may use automated AI tools to evaluate job applications for efficiency and consistency. These tools comply with local regulations, including bias audits, and we handle all personal data in accordance with state and local privacy laws.
Contact us here with hiring practice or data usage questions.
Every benefit we offer is designed with one goal: empowering you to do the best work of your career while building the life you want. Remote work, medical insurance, flexible time off, retirement savings plans, and modern family planning are just some of our offering. Check out our other benefits at Block.
Block, Inc. (NYSE: XYZ) builds technology to increase access to the global economy. Each of our brands unlocks different aspects of the economy for more people. Square makes commerce and financial services accessible to sellers. Cash App is the easy way to spend, send, and store money. Afterpay is transforming the way customers manage their spending over time. TIDAL is a music platform that empowers artists to thrive as entrepreneurs. Bitkey is a simple self-custody wallet built for bitcoin. Proto is a suite of bitcoin mining products and services. Together, we're helping build a financial system that is open to everyone.