Senior Merchant Underwriter This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Senior Merchant Underwriter based in the United States. The Senior Merchant Underwriter will play a key role in evaluating credit exposure and making informed risk decisions for new merchant applications and existing accounts. With a focus on medium- and high-risk businesses, including high-volume, e-commerce, and forward-delivery merchants, you will assess financial stability and identify potential risks before they impact payment operations. You will develop appropriate risk mitigation strategies, recommend approval conditions, and ensure underwriting decisions align with industry standards and compliance requirements. Working independently within established approval authority, you will handle complex cases while collaborating with transaction risk teams, senior management, and external partners. This role also offers the opportunity to mentor junior underwriters, strengthen underwriting practices, and contribute to consistent, high-quality risk assessments. Your analytical expertise and sound judgment will help protect financial performance while supporting responsible merchant growth in a fast-paced payments environment.
Accountabilities:
The Senior Merchant Underwriter is responsible for assessing merchant creditworthiness, managing financial exposure, and recommending risk controls that balance business opportunities with regulatory and operational requirements.
Key responsibilities include:
Credit and Financial Risk Assessment: Conduct detailed credit and financial analyses of merchants, particularly those with forward-delivery exposure in sectors such as travel, furniture, and consulting services.
Forward-Delivery Risk Evaluation: Assess risks associated with collecting payments before products or services are delivered, identifying potential financial exposure and recommending appropriate safeguards.
Risk Mitigation and Approval Conditions: Recommend reserves, escrow arrangements, collateral requirements, processing limits, and periodic account reviews based on the merchant's risk profile.
Credit Decision-Making: Make underwriting decisions within delegated approval authority and escalate applications requiring higher-level approval, providing clear supporting analysis and recommendations.
Senior Management Reporting: Prepare detailed underwriting reports and present credit assessments, risk findings, and recommendations to senior management.
Cross-Functional Risk Coordination: Collaborate with transaction risk teams to ensure credit decisions are consistent with transaction processing requirements and ongoing account monitoring.
Team Support and Mentorship: Act as an escalation point and subject-matter resource for Underwriter I and II team members handling complex or high-risk applications.
Quality Assurance and Training: Review underwriting decisions made by junior colleagues, provide constructive quality assurance feedback, and help train new underwriters on risk factors and high-risk underwriting methodologies.
Stakeholder Relationship Management: Build and maintain effective relationships with sales partners, sponsor banks, internal teams, and other key stakeholders.
Compliance and Documentation: Ensure underwriting activities comply with internal policies, card network rules, industry regulations, and legal requirements. Maintain accurate records and comprehensive documentation of credit decisions.
Risk Monitoring and Best Practices: Apply established underwriting guidelines, identify emerging merchant risk patterns and potential synthetic fraud, and support effective compliance monitoring.
Service Levels and Accuracy: Process and assess applications efficiently in a fast-paced environment while meeting departmental service-level agreements and maintaining decision quality.
Requirements:
The ideal candidate will bring extensive payments underwriting experience, strong financial analysis capabilities, and the confidence to make independent decisions on complex merchant risk cases. Required qualifications and skills include:
Professional Experience: At least 5 years of experience in payments or merchant underwriting, including a minimum of 3 years working with high-risk and/or high-volume merchants.
Credit and Financial Analysis: Demonstrated experience reviewing individual and business credit reports, interpreting financial statements, and evaluating merchant creditworthiness.
High-Risk Merchant Expertise: Strong understanding of high-risk and forward-delivery business models, including the financial exposure associated with advance payments and delayed fulfillment.
Card Network Compliance: Working knowledge of card network high-risk and high-brand-risk merchant monitoring programs and their associated compliance obligations.
Payments Risk Knowledge: Thorough understanding of merchant risk fees, dispute processes, and card network registration requirements.
Risk Mitigation Skills: Ability to identify appropriate risk controls, recommend approval conditions, and balance financial exposure with business needs.
Analytical and Decision-Making Abilities: Strong analytical skills, sound financial judgment, and the ability to make well-supported underwriting decisions within designated approval authority.
Leadership and Mentorship: Demonstrated ability to guide junior underwriting staff, review their work, provide constructive feedback, and support professional development.
Communication and Presentation: Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex risk assessments and present recommendations to senior management.
Education:
A bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, or a related field is preferred. Equivalent professional experience may be considered.
Time Management and Accuracy: Ability to manage competing priorities, meet departmental service-level agreements, and maintain accuracy in a fast-paced operating environment.
Professional Integrity: Commitment to ethical conduct, compliance standards, accurate documentation, and consistent application of underwriting best practices.
Benefits:
Specific salary, benefits, and additional compensation details were not provided in the original job description.
Professional Development: Opportunity to deepen expertise in payments underwriting, merchant credit risk, and complex financial exposure assessment.
Leadership Opportunities: Ability to mentor junior underwriters, contribute to quality assurance, and support team development.
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work with transaction risk teams, senior management, sales partners, and sponsor banks.
Professional Impact: Contribute to responsible merchant growth, stronger risk controls, and effective compliance practices.
