Operations Team Lead - Hatch Bank

Firstrust Bank•San Marcos, CA

6d•$80,000 - $100,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Operations Team Lead is responsible for overseeing day‑to‑day operational execution within a Banking‑as‑a‑Service (BaaS) platform. This role ensures operational excellence across fintech partner onboarding, transaction processing, funding flows, issue resolution, and regulatory adherence. The Operations Team Lead acts as an escalation point for complex issues and partners with Finance, Compliance, and Technology lines of business to support client operations.

Requirements

5+ years of experience in financial services or fintech operations
Direct experience supporting fintech funding operations, including settlement, prefunding, reconciliations, or money movement
Experience working within a Banking‑as‑a‑Service (BaaS) or embedded finance model
Prior people leadership or team‑lead experience in an operational environment
Strong understanding of operational controls, risk management, and regulatory expectations
Proven ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast‑paced, partner‑driven environment

Nice To Haves

Experience working with sponsor banks, payment processors, or core banking platforms
Familiarity with ACH, wires, card settlement, and real‑time payments
Experience supporting audits, regulatory exams, or compliance reviews
Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills with a process‑improvement mindset

Responsibilities

Support a team responsible for core BaaS operational functions, including transaction processing, funding operations, reconciliations, and exception management
Serve as the primary escalation point for operational issues impacting fintech partners, internal stakeholders, and downstream vendors
Drive consistent execution of operational procedures while identifying opportunities for efficiency, automation, and scalability
Maintain clear procedures for loan file completeness, document retention, and data quality; ensure timely remediation of exceptions.
Oversee end-to-end funding workflows (loan funding, wires/ACH coordination, disbursement controls, ledger movement, and confirmations).
Ensure accuracy and timeliness of partner funding, settlement cycles, and cash positioning
Ensure dual-control and evidence standards for disbursements, callbacks, and approvals; maintain documentation and audit trails.
Collaborate with Finance and Risk teams to manage funding-related controls and reporting
Act as an operational liaison between fintech partners, product, compliance, risk, technology, and customer support teams
Support fintech partner onboarding from an operational readiness perspective, ensuring funding, reporting, and establishing proper operational workflows
Communicate operational risks, trends, and performance metrics to leadership
Ensure operational processes comply with regulatory requirements, internal policies, and audit standards
Support audits, exams, and operational risk assessments by providing documentation, controls evidence, and subject matter expertise
Identify operational risks and implement mitigation strategies in collaboration with compliance and risk teams
Lead and/or support operational projects (system enhancements, vendor implementations, process redesign, and automation initiatives).
Translate business requirements into operational procedures and control frameworks; create SOPs, playbooks, and training materials.
Identify manual/repetitive work and implement automation or standardization to improve scale, quality, and cycle times.