Senior Payment Operations Analyst

Bankwell Financial Group•New Canaan, CT

About The Position

The Senior Payment Operations Analyst is a subject matter expert responsible for leading complex payment processing functions, ensuring operational integrity, and driving efficiencies within the bank’s electronic payments environment. This role supports critical functions involving wire transfers, ACH, and other electronic payments while serving as an escalation point for complex issues, high risk transactions, and regulatory inquiries. The Senior Analyst plays a key role in strengthening control environments, executing advanced investigations, supporting audits and exams, and supporting cross functional initiatives that enhance payment systems, processes, and compliance with regulatory standards.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required.
Minimum of 5 years of experience in payment operations within a banking or financial services environment, including complex domestic, international and FX wire processing.
Advanced knowledge of payment platforms and systems (e.g., SWIFT, ACH, FedLine, wire transfer systems) and regulatory frameworks such as BSA/AML, OFAC, KYC and broader consumer regulations.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office, with a focus on Excel; experience with data analysis tools preferred.
Exceptional attention to detail and proven ability to maintain accuracy when handling high risk operational processes.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to independently investigate issues, perform root-cause analysis, and recommend solutions.
Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities across systems and workflows.
Excellent time management and prioritization skills
Strong communications skills and the ability to work effectively both independently and within cross-functional teams.
Ability to identify and mitigate risks, with experience in risk management or compliance a plus.

Nice To Haves

Nacha AAP and/or APRP certification strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Execute daily payment processing activities—including high value wires, ACH transactions, and foreign exchange payments—ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and effective risk controls.
Lead complex investigations into rejected transactions, processing errors, or unusual activity; provide timely resolutions and root cause analysis.
Perform daily processing of ACH, Wire and RDC files, ensuring timely submission and completeness and accuracy of related reports.
Conduct daily reconciliations to ensure payment activity aligns with internal ledgers and operational records.
Perform fraud and sanctions screening, escalating items as required.
Identify and mitigate operational, regulatory and fraud risks within payment workflows.
Maintain detailed audit-ready records documenting transaction activity, exception handling, and system or process changes.
Ensure compliance with banking regulations, such as AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and KYC (Know Your Customer) requirements.
Ensure adherence to regulatory requirements across all payment workflows, serving as a key contributor in audit preparedness, responses, and remediation activities.
Identify control gaps and implement stronger risk mitigation practices across payment operations.
Partner with customer service and frontline teams to resolve escalated client payment inquiries and deliver high quality support.
Monitor payment systems and electronic services platforms, ensuring operational continuity and proactively addressing emerging issues.
Produce and analyze recurring and ad hoc reporting for management, audits, and operational performance reviews.
Lead user acceptance testing (UAT) for system enhancements, integrations, and platform upgrades to ensure alignment with operational and regulatory requirements.
Conduct quality assurance reviews to validate accuracy and compliance.
Collaborate with IT, Compliance, Finance, Retail, and other stakeholders to resolve systemic issues and improve payment related processes.
Lead efforts to streamline workflows, reduce risk, and implement process or system enhancements that elevate operational efficiency.
Assist with deposit operations and broader banking operational needs, when required.