Head, Product, Structured Trade & Commodity Finance

Company Description

Standard Bank Group is a leading Africa-focused financial services group, and an innovative player on the global stage, that offers a variety of career-enhancing opportunities – plus the chance to work alongside some of the sector’s most talented, motivated professionals. Our clients range from individuals, to businesses of all sizes, high net worth families and large multinational corporates and institutions. We’re passionate about creating growth in Africa. Bringing true, meaningful value to our clients and the communities we serve and creating a real sense of purpose for you.

Job Description

Own the Structured Trade and Commodity Finance portfolio (STFC) (pre-export finance, borrowing base facilities, inventory backed lending and other asset backed solutions), ensuring commercial scalability within risk appetite, disciplined capital usage, and compliance with regulatory/credit frameworks.

Essential Function:

• Define and maintain the strategic product architecture for STCF, including product constructs, collateral frameworks, eligibility criteria, and appropriate asset coverage models.
• Develop methodologies, margining rules, covenant structures, reporting standards and utilisation mechanisms, aligned to client risk profiles and credit appetite.
• Lead full lifecycle management of the STCF product suite from origination and structuring to execution, monitoring, enhancement and exit.
• Establish and maintain governance frameworks, including deal templates, security packages, perfection requirements, collateral control standards and operational risk thresholds.
• Define and monitor portfolio limits across countries, obligors, commodities, and ecosystems, ensuring alignment with concentration, sovereign, and counterparty risk appetites.
• Develop deal structuring playbooks and pricing frameworks that support consistent origination, competitive positioning and alignment with client value propositions.
• Drive commercialisation of STCF across target industries, markets and client segments, including development of distribution strategies (e.g., risk participation, insurance wraps).
• Support Coverage and Sales teams in engaging anchor clients, expanding into ecosystems, and positioning STCF as a strategic enabler of trade flows and working capital needs.
• Monitor portfolio performance across risk‑adjusted returns, RWA intensity, impairment trends, collateral health, and early‑warning triggers.
• Drive product‑level capital optimisation by designing structures that balance commercial outcomes, risk appetite, regulatory capital, liquidity and return hurdles.
• Lead proactive portfolio interventions including restructuring, covenant resets, margining adjustments and collateral enhancements to protect asset quality and meet P&L expectations.
• Champion digitisation and technology enablement across STCF, including solutions for collateral tracking, real‑time monitoring, data ingestion, and early‑warning insights.
• Introduce automation and workflow simplification for borrowing base reporting, compliance checks, release processes and operational controls.
• Enhance end‑to‑end execution quality by reducing time‑to‑close, improving client onboarding efficiency and strengthening cross‑functional delivery.
• Elevate documentation standards, legal robustness and enforceability through consistent templates, clear structuring notes, and rigorous credit alignment.
• Provide oversight during execution to ensure adherence to risk frameworks, operational readiness, collateral controls and post‑deal monitoring standards

Qualifications

Qualification: First Degree in Business Commerce

Experience Required

• Must 5 to 7 years’ experience in structured trade and commodity finance
• Experience in leading a team within structured trade and commodity finance
• Experience in implementing systems and product solutions within structured trade and commodity finance.
• Must have advanced understanding of structured trade and commodity finance and Transaction Banking, with broad operational and strong functional skills.
• More than 10 years in championing the simplification of Solutioning ways of working to enable better and faster client outcomes across multiple jurisdiction
• Comprehensive understanding of the overall firm and competitive environment and broad knowledge across multiple functions and business lines
• Demonstrate a track record of identifying and driving opportunities to expand and shift the market with new and alternative solutions aligned to current and future clients needs. 
• Demonstrate knowledge of the macro context working across multiple jurisdictions. Assimilates and applies knowledge to identify, plan and solution for multiple clients
• Develops clear solution value proposition aligned to client needs and focused on creating differentiated client experience and value.
• Drive and manage the display and understanding of the relevant legislation, regulations and solution requirements within relevant geographies
• Formulates a compelling vision and clearly articulates the benefits and future applications of any solutions, trends, client impacts across the TxB solution landscape.
• Integrates CIB ESG priorities and strategic imperatives to embed an authentic approach that fosters sustainable profitability across the TxB landscape
• Manage continuous improvement of internal solutioning system, address and guide team regarding trouble shooting, errors and liaise with IT Department in case of technical issues and enhancements, linked to operational requirements and compliance

Additional Information

Behavioural Competencies:

• Challenging Ideas
• Convincing People
• Developing Strategies
• Directing People
• Embracing Change
• Exploring Possibilities
• Generating Ideas
• Making Decisions
• Providing Insights
• Pursuing Goals
• Seizing Opportunities
• Upholding Standards

Technical Competencies:

• Business Insights
• Client Business Case
• Market Analysis
• Operational Planning
• Product Development
• Product Knowledge (Trading, Transacting)
• Risk Management
• Stakeholder Management
• Strategic Planning and Reporting
• Strategy Definition