Senior Legal Counsel (Corporate)

Hello, we’re Starling.

Banking was broken – so we decided to fix it. The vision? Fast technology, fair service and honest values. All at the tap of a phone, all the time. We built Britain’s first digital bank. One hard-won banking licence later, we set about giving people a new way to spend, save and manage their money (and take better care of the planet, too). We’re changing banking for good. Back then, we were obsessed with unravelling the knotty world of finance and solving people’s problems rather than selling them stuff. We still are.

Since then, we’ve grown. A lot. Over four million accounts (and four account types!). A team of thousands. Headquartered in London with offices in Cardiff, Dublin, Manchester and Southampton. Seven years voted Which? Recommended Provider and Britain's Best Banking Brand. Still zero branches. Our culture is open, inclusive and focused on solving real customer problems, with an emphasis on doing the right thing, even when it’s not always the easy thing. From our approach to working together and sustainability to how we build our products, our decisions need to make the world – and Starling – a better place to be. Everyone at Starling is essential to our mission, which is really quite simple: to solve our customer’s problems – and build the best bank in the world!

And now we're providing Starling to other banks, via a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) proposition through our subsidiary Engine, using the proprietary technology platform that it uses to power our own bank.

The Role:

We're now looking for an additional Senior Legal Counsel in the Starling Group’s growing Corporate Legal team, reporting directly into the Group Head of Corporate Legal. The Corporate Legal team provides support across a wide range of areas including M&A, corporate structuring, corporate finance, other strategic projects, employee share/incentive schemes, other shareholder matters, prudential regulation and intra-group arrangements. The role represents a fantastic opportunity to join a team working with a variety of business and other legal colleagues across Starling Group, supporting both Starling Bank and Engine (our software as a service business), and to make your mark at one of the UK's most exciting fintechs.

Key Responsibilities:

• Providing high-quality legal advice to internal stakeholders on the areas noted above, with appropriate recognition of commercial considerations. 
• Managing multiple projects and supporting colleagues to ensure business initiatives are executed in a timely and accurate manner.
• Instructing and working with outside counsel where necessary on specialist matters.
• Line management responsibility for Legal Counsel within the team as required.

• Excellent legal experience (private practice and/or in-house), with between 5 and 8 years PQE*. 
• Experience in one or more of the areas the Corporate Legal team supports (as described above). 
• Strong analytical, drafting and reviewing skills.
• The ability to communicate effectively and build relationships with stakeholders across the business, up to Executive and Board level.
• Capable of working well in a fast-paced environment with a wide variety of work.
• Positive and collaborative team player. 

*PQE is a guide only

• 25 days holiday (plus take your public holiday allowance whenever works best for you)
• An extra day’s holiday for your birthday
• Annual leave is increased with length of service, and you can choose to buy or sell up to five extra days off
• 16 hours paid volunteering time a year
• Salary sacrifice, company enhanced pension scheme
• Life insurance at 4x your salary
• Private Medical Insurance with VitalityHealth including mental health support and cancer care. Partner benefits include discounts with Waitrose, Mr&Mrs Smith and Peloton
• Generous family-friendly policies
• Perkbox membership giving access to retail discounts, a wellness platform for physical and mental health, and weekly free and boosted perks
• Access to initiatives like Cycle to Work and Salary Sacrificed Gym partnerships

About Us

You may be put off applying for a role because you don't tick every box. Forget that! While we can’t accommodate every flexible working request, we're always open to discussion. So, if you're excited about working with us, but aren’t sure if you're 100% there yet, get in touch anyway.

We’re on a mission to radically reshape banking – and that starts with our brilliant team. Whatever came before, we’re proud to bring together people of all backgrounds and experiences who love working together to solve problems.

Starling Bank is an equal opportunity employer, and we’re proud of our ongoing efforts to foster diversity & inclusion in the workplace. Individuals seeking employment at Starling Bank are considered without regard to race, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition, ancestry, physical or mental disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

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