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Chief Financial Officer

Payfuture · Dubai, United Arab Emirates

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Payfuture is entering an important new phase of international growth and is strengthening its executive leadership team and financial infrastructure in preparation for future institutional investment and strategic transactions. We are looking for an exceptional Chief Financial Officer to work directly with the founders and Board to lead this next stage.Key PrioritiesThe CFO's immediate priorities will centre around three objectives:1. Make Payfuture investor-readyBuild the financial reporting, forecasting, controls, KPIs and supporting information required to withstand institutional investor scrutiny and due diligence.2. Prepare and execute future fundraisingWork alongside the founders to develop the financial investment case, prepare fundraising materials and data, engage with investors and advisors, and lead the financial and due diligence work streams through to transaction completion.3. Build the finance platform for the next stage of growthCreate a finance organisation, reporting structure and planning framework capable of supporting a significantly larger and more institutional business.Fundraising & Investor ReadinessFundraising and investor readiness will be a central component of the CFO mandate. The CFO will:• Lead Payfuture's financial and organisational readiness for institutional fundraising.• Develop the financial strategy underpinning future capital raises, including funding requirements, use of proceeds, capital planning and scenario analysis.• Work closely with the founders to determine appropriate fundraising strategy, timing and financial positioning.• Build and own the integrated financial model that supports Payfuture's investment case.• Develop credible multi-year forecasts across revenue, gross margin, EBITDA, cash flow and capital requirements.• Translate Payfuture's operating model and payments infrastructure into a clear and compelling financial story for investors.• Define and evidence the KPIs that investors will use to understand the quality, scalability and economics of the business.• Ensure historical financial information can withstand detailed investor and financial due diligence.• Build and own the finance components of the investor data room.• Identify weaknesses, inconsistencies or diligence risks before a transaction process begins and drive their resolution.• Support preparation of investor presentations, financial materials and management presentations.• Participate directly in investor meetings alongside the founders.• Lead responses to investor financial questions, diligence requests and financial model challenges.• Coordinate financial due diligence with investors, accountants, lawyers, corporate finance advisors and other external parties.• Support valuation discussions, term sheet analysis and assessment of potential deal structures.• Model dilution, ownership and different financing scenarios for existing shareholders.• Support negotiations through signing and completion.The objective is to ensure that Payfuture approaches future fundraising from a position of financial credibility, strong preparation and institutional readiness.Building the Investment CaseA critical part of the role will be turning the complexity of a global payments business into an investment case that investors can understand and underwrite. The CFO will work with the founders and commercial leadership to establish clear visibility across:• Revenue growth and quality.• Gross profit and contribution margin.• Transaction volumes and payment economics.• Revenue and margin by geography, corridor, product and customer.• Customer concentration and diversification.• Customer acquisition and retention.• Processing and partner costs.• FX and settlement economics.• Cash generation and working capital.• Market expansion economics.• Operating leverage and the path to profitability.• Capital requirements and deployment of fundraising proceeds.The CFO should be able to move beyond reporting numbers and explain what drives those numbers, why they are defensible and how they scale.Financial Reporting & Management InformationThe CFO will assess the current finance environment and continue developing it toward institutional standards. Responsibilities will include:• Take full ownership of monthly management accounts and financial reporting.• Establish a reliable and disciplined month-end reporting process.• Design and implement Board-level financial reporting packs.• Develop a clear KPI framework for the founders, Board and future investors.• Improve visibility of revenue, margins, costs, liquidity and cash flow.• Establish appropriate reporting by legal entity, market, product, customer and payment corridor.• Ensure consistency between management reporting, statutory accounts and transaction materials.• Build financial dashboards and MI that allow management to identify performance trends and risks quickly.Financial Planning & ModellingThe CFO will establish a robust financial planning framework capable of supporting strategic growth and institutional investment. This will include:• Building and owning the company's integrated financial model.• Developing annual budgets and rolling forecasts.• Producing credible three-to-five-year financial projections.• Building base, upside and downside scenarios.• Developing cash flow and liquidity forecasts.• Modelling geographic expansion and new product opportunities.• Assessing investment requirements and expected returns.• Establishing appropriate financial KPIs and performance targets.• Creating a disciplined process for measuring actual performance against forecast. The CFO must be able to defend the assumptions behind the model under detailed investor scrutiny.Finance Infrastructure, Controls & GovernanceInstitutional investment requires more than a compelling growth story. The underlying financial infrastructure must also be credible. The CFO will:• Review the existing finance organisation, systems and processes.• Identify financial control and reporting weaknesses and drive improvements.• Strengthen accounting policies and financial controls across the Group.• Improve reconciliation across complex payment and settlement flows.• Ensure appropriate governance around treasury, payments, expenses, procurement and financial approvals.• Strengthen multi-entity and multi-jurisdiction reporting.• Coordinate with auditors, tax advisors and other professional advisors.• Ensure the finance organisation is capable of supporting increased governance and reporting requirements as the business scales.Strategic Finance & M&ABeyond the fundraising mandate, the CFO will become a key strategic partner to the founders and Board. Responsibilities will include:• Provide financial input into Payfuture's long-term strategy and capital allocation.• Evaluate organic and inorganic growth opportunities.• Support potential banking acquisition activity.• Lead financial modelling, valuation and due diligence for potential acquisitions.• Assess financing options and capital structures for strategic transactions.• Support Board-level decisions relating to investment, expansion and M&A.• Build the financial capabilities required to support future fundraising rounds and strategic transactions.What We're Looking ForWe are looking for someone who has done this before. The ideal candidate will have:• Previous CFO, Finance Director, VP Finance or senior strategic finance experience in a high growth business.• Direct experience preparing and executing institutional fundraising transactions.• Demonstrable experience preparing founder-led or high-growth businesses for institutional investment.• Experience successfully supporting significant fundraising transactions frompreparation through diligence and completion.• Demonstrable experience building investor-grade financial models and multi-year forecasts.• Experience personally presenting financial performance and forecasts to investors.• Strong understanding of investor due diligence and data room requirements.• Experience working with founders through fundraising negotiations and transaction execution.• Strong management accounting, FP&A and financial reporting capabilities.• Experience strengthening finance functions ahead of institutional investment.• Experience operating across multiple entities and jurisdictions.• Strong commercial judgement and the ability to understand complex business models.Experience in payments, fintech, banking or broader financial services would be highly advantageous. Experience with private equity, growth equity, venture capital, strategic investment, investment banking or corporate finance transactions would also be valuable.What Success Looks LikeSuccess will mean:• Payfuture has reliable, investor-grade management accounts and financial reporting.• A robust integrated financial model and multi-year forecast is in place.• The key metrics and unit economics of the business are clearly understood and evidenced.• Board and investor reporting has been institutionalised.• Financial controls and diligence risks have been identified and strengthened.• A comprehensive investor data room is ready.• The founders can articulate a compelling investment case supported by credible financial evidence.• Payfuture is positioned to enter future institutional fundraising and strategic transaction processes from a position of preparation and confidence.• The CFO is capable of leading the financial workstream through investor diligence, negotiation and transaction completion.