Director of UAE Operations and Regulatory Affairs

About PFM

About The Department

About The Role

Requirements

• Performance objectives
• Objective 1 - Own UAE entity governance and free-zone compliance
• Outcome: Prop Firm Match Global FZCO is fully compliant, in good standing, and audit-ready at all times.
• Typical tasks:
• Maintain free-zone licence, share capital, and corporate documentation up to date
• Ensure timely renewals, statutory filings, and entity-level reporting
• Coordinate with the free-zone authority on all governance matters
• Run quarterly governance reviews with the CFO
• Objective 2 - Lead regulatory affairs and authority relationships
• Outcome: PFM operates with regulatory clarity in the UAE and can navigate questions from authorities quickly and credibly.
• Typical tasks:
• Own the regulatory map for PFM's activities in the UAE (free-zone, federal, financial-services adjacencies)
• Build and maintain relationships with regulators, free-zone authorities, banks, and key service providers
• Track regulatory changes affecting PFM and translate them into business impact and action items
• Lead any direct regulator engagement or audit on PFM's behalf, in coordination with legal counsel
• Partner with internal and external legal counsel on the UAE legal landscape — contracts, employment law, FZCO governance, commercial agreements, and dispute resolution
• Objective 3 - Manage UAE operations: banking, tax, audit, and admin
• Outcome: All UAE-side operational rails (banking, corporate tax, VAT, audit, visas, office, vendors) run smoothly with no surprises.
• Typical tasks:
• Manage banking relationships and resolve account-, transaction-, or compliance-related issues
• Oversee UAE corporate tax (9%) and VAT registration, filings, and compliance with the Federal Tax Authority
• Lead the annual statutory audit cycle in coordination with the Finance function
• Sponsor visas for UAE-based hires and manage related immigration, residency, and renewal workflows
• Own the UAE office presence (if applicable), vendor contracts, insurance, and local administration
• Objective 4 - Partner with leadership on UAE strategic initiatives
• Outcome: Leadership has a trusted UAE partner who can scope, scale, and de-risk any new initiative anchored in the region.
• Typical tasks:
• Advise leadership on the regulatory and operational implications of new products, partnerships, or markets
• Lead UAE-specific initiatives such as banking expansion, new entity structures, or regulatory licensing
• Represent PFM in select UAE industry forums and at high-trust meetings with partners or authorities
• Surface risks and opportunities to the CFO and CEO with clear written analysis

What We Look For

• Must have
• 7+ years of operations, regulatory, or compliance leadership experience in the UAE
• Hands-on familiarity with one or more UAE free zones (e.g., DMCC, IFZA, DIFC, ADGM, JAFZA)
• Strong working knowledge of UAE corporate tax, VAT, and Federal Tax Authority requirements
• Experience managing banking relationships and resolving compliance / KYC matters with UAE banks
• Track record of running statutory audits and filings end-to-end
• Demonstrated experience working with internal or external legal counsel on UAE-specific matters — contracts, employment law, free-zone governance, or commercial agreements
• Excellent English; comfortable operating in a remote-first, async-first environment
• Nice to have
• Background in fintech, financial services, brokerage, or trading-adjacent industries
• DIFC or ADGM-specific licensing experience
• Working Arabic — useful for direct regulator and bank conversations
• Existing relationships with UAE regulators, free-zone authorities, or top legal / audit firms
• Experience scaling a UAE entity through tax or regulatory transitions (e.g., corporate tax rollout)

Compensation

Location & work setup

• Location: UAE-based (Dubai preferred), with the ability to be physically present at relevant authorities, banks, and the free-zone office when needed
• Working hours: Flexible, with reasonable overlap with CET hours (4+ hours of overlap)
• Employment type: Full-time

Benefits

• Hiring stages
• We keep our process simple, transparent, and respectful of your time.
• Here's what to expect:
• Application screening We carefully review all applications to identify candidates whose background aligns with the role's requirements. You'll receive a timely and transparent update on your application status
• Video intro + role fit questionnaire A short async step - no scheduling required. You'll record a brief video introduction and complete a written questionnaire. This helps us understand who you are, your relevant background, and how your experience aligns with the role without either side committing to a live call upfront
• Discovery HR Interview A conversation with our HR team focused on company and culture match. We'll walk you through how PFM works, what remote ownership looks like in practice, and what success in this role looks like. You'll have plenty of space to ask questions and share your goals
• Real-world task (paid) A short, scoped exercise based on a real PFM UAE operations or regulatory challenge. We compensate for your time because we believe that's the right way to do it. This stage is designed to give both sides a realistic view of the work before committing further
• Professional interview You will meet our CFO, Albert B., to focus on your UAE operations and regulatory expertise — entity governance, banking, tax, free-zone matters, and how you approach complex regulatory situations. This is the decisive conversation on domain skills and role-specific experience
• Peer & values conversation A cross-team interview evaluated against PFM's structured values scorecard. You'll meet a peer (Rana Eh.) and a bar raiser (Konstantinos K., Head of Data & Analytics) from outside the immediate team
• Leadership interview (optional) A closing conversation with PFM's leadership team - Martin J., John R., and Ashlee C. - on strategic alignment, ownership mindset, and long-term fit
• If there's a strong mutual match, we start with an informal conversation to align on expectations, then follow up with a formal written offer.
• Full transparency throughout, and time for you to make an informed decision.
• Before applying take into account that:
• ▸ If you don't meet every single qualification but believe you can excel in the role based on what it requires - we encourage you to apply.
• ▸ We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.
• ▸ Even if it's not listed as a formal requirement, we truly value candidates who have clear familiarity with the prop trading industry and us, our mission and what we do.
• Not the right fit for this role?
• If this role isn't the right match but you have experience in trading operations, customer success, compliance, support, partnerships, or a related area - we still want to hear from you.
• Join our and we'll reach out when a relevant role opens.
• Every submission is reviewed, and the pool is always the first place we look before opening a new search.