Emerging Markets Lead – MENA (Arabic speaking)

Job description

ABOUT COLUMN For companies building financial technology and transforming the financial services space, the biggest bottleneck to their growth and innovation is often the underlying banks and infrastructure stack they rely on. We have spent our careers founding and scaling companies like Plaid, Square, Meta, Blend, and Affirm, and have seen this problem firsthand — builders and developers needing to partner with traditional banks, and creating API and abstraction layers over the patchwork that is the bank, its core, and many other vendors. All of this results in a complex (and often expensive) banking supply chain involving a user, fintech, BaaS middleware provider, bank, core and the Federal Reserve. At Column, we set out to simplify and fix this. We are a bank and a software company built from the ground up, offering builders and developers technology-forward banking solutions that cut out the hundreds of vendors, middleware providers, and abstraction layers. This means a safer, more transparent, and less costly banking supply chain. Come build with us! THE OPPORTUNITY As Column’s Emerging Markets Lead, you will spearhead one of our most strategic international expansion initiatives. In this role, you will be responsible for driving 0-to-1 growth for a new banking product, with a particular focus on building and nurturing relationships with prospective partners and customers in select markets, with a specific focus on markets within MENA. This role combines global expansion strategy, business development with hands-on relationship management, requiring a general business athlete who thrives on networking and executing complex partnerships. This is a unique opportunity to be on the founding team for a new business line, with significant autonomy and direct impact on Column’s global expansion strategy. This position will be based in Dubai with regular travel throughout the region and quarterly travel to Column’s headquarters in San Francisco. WHAT YOU’LL DO - Lead regional market development: Own the end-to-end process of identifying, evaluating, and executing on high-value partnerships with banks across a number of international markets. - Build and maintain key relationships: Serve as the primary relationship owner for prospective and existing customers, conducting regular in-person meetings, attending local industry events, and managing ongoing partnership development. - Own partnership execution: Lead complex deal processes from initial outreach through contract signature, working collaboratively with Column’s Legal, Compliance, and Product teams. - Develop market intelligence: Gather and synthesize insights on local market conditions, regulatory developments, competitive landscape, and customer needs to inform Column’s regional strategy. - Market expertise and network: Become an expert on the correspondent banking space in our key emerging markets and build an extensive network within their banking and fintech ecosystems. - Drive operational excellence: Build scalable processes for onboarding, relationship management, and ongoing support that can be replicated as we expand. WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL - 6+ years of experience in business operations, growth or partnerships in a high-caliber environment; prior experience at a top-tier technology company or management consulting firm preferred - 4+ years of business experience specifically in MENA - Native fluency in Arabic and experience managing business relationships with Arabic-speaking clients and stakeholders - Track record of successfully managing complex partnerships and high-value deals with executive stakeholders - Natural networker who thrives on building trust and long-term relationships with senior executives, market experts and decision-makers - Strong strategic thinking - ability to assess market opportunities, evaluate potential partners, and provide strategic recommendations to senior leadership - Hyper-organized approach to project management, including coordinating efforts across multiple teams; comfort juggling multiple projects and priorities is critical - Scrappy, roll-up-your-sleeves attitude - we thrive because we work harder, are more creative, and have zero ego when it comes to getting our hands dirty to build a business WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU Column is committed to working with the best and brightest people from the broadest talent pool possible. We value bringing together a team with different perspectives, educational backgrounds, and life experiences, and believe a diversity of ideas is what allows us to develop the best solutions. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation during the application and recruiting process, please reach out to accommodations@column.com. We participate in the E-Verify program in certain locations as required by law. Learn more about the E-Verify program here https://e-verify.gov.