Senior Legal Counsel (Corporate)

Company Description

Wise is a global technology company, building the best way to move and manage the world’s money.
Min fees. Max ease. Full speed.

Whether people and businesses are sending money to another country, spending abroad, or making and receiving international payments, Wise is on a mission to make their lives easier and save them money.

As part of our team, you will be helping us create an entirely new network for the world's money.
For everyone, everywhere.

More about our mission and what we offer.

Job Description

This is a senior, high-impact role in Wise's global Legal team, focused on corporate law, corporate governance and strategic transactions across a listed, multi-jurisdictional group. As a public company dual-listed on Nasdaq and the London Stock Exchange and operating across the UK, EMEA, the US and beyond, Wise's corporate agenda is broad and fast-moving. We cover a range of matters such as capital markets and disclosure, group M&A and corporate development, treasury and debt programmes, regulatory capital and licence applications, share plans and reward, and board and subsidiary governance. Your mission is to enable, protect and empower the business and people of Wise, helping the group achieve growth with minimal distraction.

You'll partner with senior stakeholders across the business and provide first-rate corporate legal advice as Wise continues to scale globally. To achieve this you'll be:

• Providing strategic corporate law advice and practical, commercially-focused solutions to the group and its subsidiary entities across general corporate law and corporate governance, supporting both listed parent-company and regulated-subsidiary requirements;

• Advising on capital markets and group disclosure matters, including periodic and ad hoc disclosure obligations, market abuse and inside information controls, and the corporate and securities-law aspects of operating a dual-listed structure;

• Supporting capital raising and treasury activity, including equity matters and debt programmes, working closely with the Investor Relations, Treasury and group Finance functions;

• Leading and supporting reorganisations and corporate development activity, working closely with the group strategy and corporate development teams, from structuring and drafting through to negotiation and completion;

• Advising the group Finance function on the corporate and governance aspects of the group's consolidated annual report and accounts, and supporting board and committee reporting;

• Advising Reward on the corporate and governance implications of share option and other equity incentive arrangements;

• Supporting corporate governance across the group's entities, including board and subsidiary governance, intra-group arrangements, entity management and, where relevant, licence and regulatory-capital related corporate matters;

• Preparing, reviewing and negotiating a broad range of corporate agreements and documents in connection with the group's corporate activities;

• Working as part of a team of generalist lawyers to support the wider commercial needs of the business, including advising on platform and partnership arrangements and drafting and negotiating a broad range of commercial agreements across Wise's products and business lines, from structuring and drafting through to negotiation; 

• Working proactively with the wider Legal team to build and scale a high-performing corporate legal advisory function, delivering a range of high-profile, enterprise-wide corporate transactions;

• Leading and evolving corporate legal processes, procedures and governance-risk frameworks appropriate to a listed group, including through identifying technology solutions that streamline workflows and increase scalability;

• Managing relationships with external counsel and suppliers to optimise cost, budget and value while securing top-quality legal support;

• Understanding the real risks to the business and advising on the operational impact and practicalities of those risks; and

• Mentoring and upskilling other members of the Legal team and the wider business, making life simple and easy.

Qualifications

• 8+ years PQE and be a qualified lawyer in England and Wales (or another common law jurisdiction);

• A strong background advising on corporate and corporate governance rules and regulations, with proven experience coordinating a broad range of corporate transactions and complex corporate matters in the UK and, ideally, the EU and/or US, across both private and listed company environments;

• Experience of, or a strong interest in, capital markets and group disclosure, including the requirements that apply to listed and publicly-traded groups;

• Proven aptitude for corporate and commercial drafting, structuring and negotiation, with excellent legal drafting and interpretation skills;

• Experience gained in-house at a well-established or high-growth company and/or at a top-tier law firm, ideally within a corporate practice;

• A broad legal knowledge that enables you to spot and resolve a variety of issues across corporate, governance, regulatory, contract and risk, and an ability to distil complexity and clearly communicate practical, risk-based solutions;

• The ability to take a position on key issues, present persuasive recommendations and constructively drive consensus among stakeholders, communicating what is relevant and important in a concise manner;

• Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to prioritise and work independently under tight deadlines across multiple projects;

• Strong interpersonal and team-player skills, with experience working across a network of cross-functional stakeholders to solve problems collaboratively;

• A strategic, solutions-oriented mindset, skilled at assessing risk and recommending solutions that balance commercial and risk considerations, anticipating challenges and thinking ahead; and

• Energy, presence and the ability to build open, trusting relationships across all levels of the organisation, including at Board and C-suite level, in an international setting, with a get-it-done, collaborative approach and comfort with the ambiguity of a fast-paced, rapidly-evolving environment.

Additional Information

What we offer in return:

• Stock options as a part of compensation package;

• Lots of awesome Wise benefits;

• Flexible working - whether it's working from home, school plays or life admin we get that flexibility is essential and you're trusted to do the right thing;

• Wellbeing support - you and your family have access to an Employee Assistance Program, where you'll be able to speak to qualified counsellors on anything that matters to you;

• 6 weeks of paid sabbatical after 4 years at Wise on top of annual leave.

For everyone, everywhere. We're people building money without borders  — without judgement or prejudice, too. We believe teams are strongest when they are diverse, equitable and inclusive.

We're proud to have a truly international team, and we celebrate our differences.
Inclusive teams help us live our values and make sure every Wiser feels respected, empowered to contribute towards our mission and able to progress in their careers.

If you want to find out more about what it's like to work at Wise visit Wise.Jobs.

Keep up to date with life at Wise by following us on LinkedIn and Instagram.