Network Development Manager

Context of the role

The Network Development Manager will be based in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and will report to the Americas - Head of Network Development. The primary responsibility of this role is to develop and execute sustainable network partnerships with a variety of participants across the payments and fintech ecosystem, as well as manage a portfolio of existing partnerships, and be able to drive value through the execution of revenue-focused commercial strategies via cross and up-sell opportunities. The ideal candidate will be an individual who is incredibly motivated to optimize Thunes money movement superhighway,  possesses high energy and has a strong business acumen in the cross-border space across both North America and LATAM with an ability to influence and drive changes required to continue to deliver a seamless, compliant,and reliable payments experience for our Global Network Members. The incumbent will be focused on building and scaling partnerships with large, strategic financial partners including top tier global banks, wallet providers, acquirers, payment facilitators, card issuers and processors. Leveraging their partnerships and industry relationships, this person will advocate for innovation and support Thunes' go to market efforts as well as strive to be a thought leader in the financial ecosystem. They will be developing a well-functioning pay-in and pay-out network across The Americas to support the growth and development of our global network.

Key Responsibilities 

• Manages and develops critical banking and network partnerships, with a focus on driving and executing joint initiatives and helping launch and manage new offerings benefiting Thunes’ users. An execution mindset is critical here.
• Acts as an owner, is able to own relationships end-to-end to ensure all relevant aspects of the partnership are working seamlessly, both commercially and operationally.
• Works closely with Product to secure network partner’s suitability for Thunes platform and is able to influence developments required to enhance Thunes value proposition based on local payments needs.
• Understands and clearly articulates the payment-related nuances among the different markets in-scope (i.e. United States vs. Brazil) to demonstrate in-depth knowledge of the geos covered. 
• Leverages industry knowledge to craft thoughtful partnerships and product strategies with banks and networks, partnering with business development and various stakeholders (including risk, product, engineering, compliance, legal, and treasury) 
• Continually drive revenue within accounts through cross and up sell opportunities in close collaboration with Thunes Go-To-Market and Account Management teams.
• Steers, in conjunction with Business Development team, banks and FI's to execute deals supporting that strategy and help ensure that there is a proper execution plan in place
• Gather inputs from and co-ordinates with internal stakeholders (including risk, compliance, product, engineering, treasury) on creation and execution of partner strategy
• Leverages significant industry experience to Thunes' internal teams; supports an aligned holistic network strategy and advances that strategy with FI's 
• Ensures all specific reports and records are completed within timeframe, including utilisation of CRM tools with precision, sharing timely feedback to manager about performance, partnerships activity, and status.
• Initiate and maintain strong working relationships with colleagues and customers to ease communication channels and facilitate resolutions for issues, ensuring satisfaction amongst existing partners and cross-functional stakeholders.

Professional Experience/Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, or related field
• At least 5+ years of network partnerships and business development experience working with financial institutions and payments companies across the region. 
• Track record of top commercial performance in a Payments business with proven ability to grow revenue share.
• Excellent negotiation skills with the tenacity to drive commercial value in upsell and cross sell scenarios
• Should be able to manage multiple stakeholders, including compliance, legal, solutions delivery, treasury and finance
• Strong negotiator and ambitious on what Thunes should try to do with their network partners and how Thunes creates value and differentiation
• Has broad and complex first-in-kind deals experience with top financial institutions, interfacing with C-Level executives
• Operationally focused, with an ability to see a deal through to success, far beyond signing, leading teams through execution by using planning, metrics, and organisational structures
• Data-driven mindset to propose and drive strategies and decision making whose value can be objectively measured for contribution to Thunes’ goals.
• Ability to influence without direct authority to drive consensus with internal stakeholders’ and external partners.
• Proficiency in English, Spanish or Portuguese are a big +

About Thunes

Thunes is the Smart Superhighway for money movement around the world. Thunes’ proprietary Direct Global Network allows Members to make payments in real-time in over 130 countries and more than 80 currencies.

Thunes’ Network connects directly to over 7 billion mobile wallets and bank accounts worldwide, via more than 350 different payment methods, such as GCash, M-Pesa, Airtel, MTN, Orange, JazzCash, Easypaisa, AliPay, WeChat Pay and many more.

Members of Thunes’ Direct Global Network include gig economy giants like Uber and Deliveroo, super-apps like Grab and WeChat, MTOs, fintechs, PSPs and banks. Thunes’ Direct Global Network differentiates itself through its worldwide reach, in-house Smart Treasury Management Platform and Fortress Compliance Infrastructure, ensuring Members of the Network receive unrivalled speed, control, visibility, protection and cost efficiencies when making real-time payments globally.

Headquartered in Singapore, Thunes has offices in 12 locations, including Barcelona, Beijing, Dubai, London, Manila, Nairobi, Paris, Riyadh, San Francisco, Sao Paulo and Shanghai. For more information, visit: https://www.thunes.com/