Director, Card Acquiring & Processing Operations UK & EU

The Company\n\nPayPal has been revolutionizing commerce globally for more than 25 years. Creating innovative experiences that make moving money, selling, and shopping simple, personalized, and secure, PayPal empowers consumers and businesses in approximately 200 markets to join and thrive in the global economy. \n\nWe operate a global, two-sided network at scale that connects hundreds of millions of merchants and consumers. We help merchants and consumers connect, transact, and complete payments, whether they are online or in person. PayPal is more than a connection to third-party payment networks. We provide proprietary payment solutions accepted by merchants that enable the completion of payments on our platform on behalf of our customers.\n\nWe offer our customers the flexibility to use their accounts to purchase and receive payments for goods and services, as well as the ability to transfer and withdraw funds. We enable consumers to exchange funds more safely with merchants using a variety of funding sources, which may include a bank account, a PayPal or Venmo account balance, PayPal and Venmo branded credit products, a credit card, a debit card, certain cryptocurrencies, or other stored value products such as gift cards, and eligible credit card rewards. Our PayPal, Venmo, and Xoom products also make it safer and simpler for friends and family to transfer funds to each other. We offer merchants an end-to-end payments solution that provides authorization and settlement capabilities, as well as instant access to funds and payouts. We also help merchants connect with their customers, process exchanges and returns, and manage risk. We enable consumers to engage in cross-border shopping and merchants to extend their global reach while reducing the complexity and friction involved in enabling cross-border trade. \n\nOur beliefs are the foundation for how we conduct business every day. We live each day guided by our core values of Inclusion, Innovation, Collaboration, and Wellness. Together, our values ensure that we work together as one global team with our customers at the center of everything we do \u2013 and they push us to ensure we take care of ourselves, each other, and our communities.\n\nJob Summary:\n\nThis job influences executive-level decision-making regarding business and technical strategies for payment partnerships. They establish and manage strategic relationships with banks and financial institutions, leading efforts to expand market reach. Collaboration with cross-functional teams enhances product offerings, while staying informed about competitive dynamics drives innovation and revenue growth.\n\nJob Description:\n\nEssential Responsibilities: \n\n * Define the overarching partnership strategy to align with business growth and innovation goals.\n * Establish and maintain relationships with executive stakeholders at banks, payment networks, and other industry entities.\n * Drive market expansion by identifying opportunities in new market segments and geographies.\n * Lead high-level negotiations to secure mutually beneficial agreements with strategic partners.\n * Collaborate with senior leadership to ensure partnership strategies align with organizational priorities.\n * Represent the company at key industry events to strengthen its reputation as a market leader.\n * Oversee the implementation of partnerships, ensuring objectives are met effectively and on time.\n * Influence cross-functional teams to execute partnership strategies across product, marketing, and legal functions.\n * Anticipate and mitigate risks related to regulatory changes and competitive dynamics in the payments industry.\n * Evaluate the long-term impact of partnerships on revenue growth and market leadership.\n\n\n\nMinimum Qualifications:\n\n * 10+ years relevant experience and a Bachelor\u2019s degree OR Any equivalent combination of education and experience.\n\n\n\nAdditional Responsibilities \u0026 Preferred Qualifications:\n\nOverview\n\nThe Director, Card Acquiring \u0026 Processing Operations \u2013 UK \u0026 EU is responsible for establishing and maintaining the operational framework for PayPal\u2019s European card acquiring portfolio, spanning direct acquiring, direct processing, and third-party acquiring and processing models.\n\nThis role owns portfolio-level oversight of operational performance, governance, and resilience across the UK and EU. The Director will ensure consistent standards across authorization performance, routing effectiveness, settlement integrity, dispute management, and scheme compliance, while providing structured visibility into performance, risk, and economic outcomes.\n\nThis is a senior individual contributor role operating across Product, Engineering, Risk, Compliance, Finance, and external acquiring and processing partners.\n\nEssential Responsibilities\n\n * Establish and maintain the operational framework for card acquiring and processing across the UK \u0026 EU, covering direct and third-party models.\n\n\n\n\n * Define performance standards, governance structures, and review cadences across authorization, routing, clearing, settlement, and disputes.\n\n\n\n\n * Own portfolio-level oversight of operational performance, resilience, and economic outcomes across acquiring models.\n\n\n\n\n * Ensure consistent accountability and operating discipline across internal teams and external acquirers and processors.\n\n\n\n\n * Oversee adherence to Visa, Mastercard, and domestic scheme rules, ensuring operational readiness for audits and regulatory requirements.\n\n\n\n\n * Partner cross-functionally to translate operational performance themes into structural improvements and prioritized actions.\n\n\n\n\n * Evaluate the effectiveness and resilience of direct and third-party acquiring models, recommending adjustments to optimize performance, cost, and risk exposure.\n\n\n\n\n * Provide executive visibility into portfolio health, performance trends, and material operational risks.\n\n\n\n\nExpected Qualifications\n\n * 12+ years of relevant experience in card acquiring, payment processing, or scheme operations.\n\n\n\n\n * Bachelor\u2019s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.\n\n\n\n\nPreferred Qualifications\n\n * Experience across both direct and third-party acquiring and processing environments.\n\n\n\n\n * Strong understanding of Visa and Mastercard authorization, clearing, settlement, and dispute processes.\n\n\n\n\n * Demonstrated experience improving operational performance in multi-acquirer or multi-processor ecosystems.\n\n\n\n\n * Experience operating in large, matrixed organizations.\n\n\n\n\n * Strong analytical and commercial acumen, with the ability to link operational performance to financial impact.\n\n\n\n\n * Proven ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders and external partners at senior levels.\n\n\n\n\n * Structured, disciplined approach to operational governance and performance management.\n\n\n\n\nSubsidiary:\n\nPayPal\n\nTravel Percent:\n\n0\n\nPayPal does not charge candidates any fees for courses, applications, resume reviews, interviews, background checks, or onboarding. When making an application directly, we will never ask you to share passwords, one-time passcodes (OTP), or verification codes. Any such request is a red flag and likely part of a scam. All communication regarding your application will come from official PayPal email domains. If you suspect fraudulent activity, please report it immediately. To learn more about how to identify and avoid recruitment fraud please visit https://careers.pypl.com/contact-us. \n\nFor the majority of employees, PayPal\u0027s balanced hybrid work model offers 3 days in the office for effective in-person collaboration and 2 days at your choice of either the PayPal office or your home workspace, ensuring that you equally have the benefits and conveniences of both locations.\n\nOur Benefits:\n\nAt PayPal, we\u2019re committed to building an equitable and inclusive global economy. And we can\u2019t do this without our most important asset-you. That\u2019s why we offer comprehensive, choice-based programs, to support all aspects of personal wellbeing\u2014physical, emotional, and financial\u2014delivering meaningful value where it matters most. We strive to create a flexible, balanced work culture with a holistic approach to benefits, including generous paid time off, healthcare coverage for you and your family, and resources to create financial security and support your mental health.\n\nWho We Are:\n\nClick Here to learn more about our culture and community.\n\nCommitment to Diversity and Inclusion \n\nPayPal provides equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. In addition, PayPal will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities. If you are unable to submit an application because of incompatible assistive technology or a disability, please contact us at [email protected]. \n\nBelonging at PayPal:\n\nOur employees are central to advancing our mission, and we strive to create an environment where everyone can do their best work with a sense of purpose and belonging. Belonging at PayPal means creating a workplace with a sense of acceptance and security where all employees feel included and valued. We are proud to have a diverse workforce reflective of the merchants, consumers, and communities that we serve, and we continue to take tangible actions to cultivate inclusivity and belonging at PayPal.\n\nAny general requests for consideration of your skills, please Join our Talent Community. \n\nWe know the confidence gap and imposter syndrome can get in the way of meeting spectacular candidates. Please don\u2019t hesitate to apply.\n