Senior Model Risk Manager

Summary

Join Mercury, a financial technology company building the financial stack for startups, as a Senior Model Risk Manager. You will lead the validation, monitoring, and governance of various models, including rule-based detection models, data pipelines, vendor models, and ML/AI models. Ensure Mercury's models are accurate, compliant, and robust, supporting the continuous development of the model risk framework. This hands-on role requires collaboration with model developers, compliance leads, and engineering partners. You will perform independent model validation, assess model methodologies, evaluate emerging modeling techniques, and support ongoing monitoring and model governance. The role also involves recommending risk mitigation strategies, preparing validation reports, and partnering with compliance and legal teams to ensure regulatory alignment. You will champion model risk management within the company and cultivate model risk principles among cross-functional teams.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Engineering, Finance, or a related field
• 6–8 years of experience in model risk management, model development, quantitative analytics or data science
• 2-4 years of experience in financial crimes related modeling and tuning techniques
• Strong command of statistical analysis and data validation methods; proficiency in SQL and Python
• Solid understanding of regulatory frameworks (e.g., SR 11-7, OCC 2011-12, FinCEN advisories)
• Experience drafting validation reports, audit response materials, and stakeholder briefings
• Critical thinking skills and investigative rigor when reviewing data, assumptions, and outputs
• A healthy dose of skepticism combined with a constructive, solution-oriented mindset
• Exceptional attention to detail across documentation, validation artifacts, and analysis
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to write clear, structured, and technically sound documentation
• Comfort in an ambiguous, fast-paced, and rapidly changing business and regulatory environment
• Ambitious sense of curiosity and willingness to explore how compliance and risk management impacts Mercury’s products and our customers outside of one’s comfort zone, such as new markets or financial products
• Respect for and interest in financial rules and regulations, as well as an eagerness to innovate and drive the industry forward

Responsibilities

• Perform independent model validation with a focus of AML and sanctions models, including transaction monitoring, customer risk scoring, sanctions screening, related AI tools, etc
• Assess model methodologies, data integrity, assumptions, implementation, and output reasonableness
• Evaluate emerging modeling techniques, such as behavioral analytics and machine learning, for suitability in financial crime detection
• Support the establishment and maintenance of monitoring plans for model performance, stability, and concept drift
• Lead periodic model reviews, recalibrations, and performance assessments in coordination with model owners
• Track model inventory, issue remediation, and documentation standards under SR 11-7 and internal governance requirements
• Recommend risk mitigation strategies for model limitations, including compensating controls, overrides, and thresholds
• Participate in issue tracking, documentation, and validation of remediation evidence for model validation findings
• Prepare model validation reports and technical summaries in response to requests from internal audit, executives, bank partners and regulators
• Partner with compliance and legal teams to ensure model alignment with regulatory standards (e.g., BSA/AML, OFAC, FATF, FinCEN)
• Champion the development of model risk management as a core function within a fast-paced fintech environment
• Cultivate model risk principles, regulatory expectations, and the value of strong model governance among cross-functional teams including engineering, product, risk, and compliance
• Assist with one-off data validation tasks to support timely and accurate compliance reporting to regulators and bank partners
• Engage in early risk identification efforts and provide MRM advice on the design and governance of new machine learning and AI models under development
• Flex into broader analytical or compliance-related requests as needed, supporting the evolving needs of a growing MRM function

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree or PhD is preferred
• Knowledge of Haskell is a plus but not required
• Familiarity with Sanctions screening vendor tools (e.g., Bridger, Fircosoft, etc) is a plus
• Experience with Machine Learning and /or AI models is a plus
• CAMS, CRCM, or equivalent certification is a plus

Benefits

• Base salary
• Equity