Chief Operating Officer

• Higher education in finance, economics, business administration, operations management, IT or a related field.
• A master’s degree, MBA or international certifications in operations management, project management, finance or internal control will be a significant advantage.
• At least 15 years of experience in the financial sector, including at least 10 years in brokerage operations, custody, settlements, client operations or related functions and at least 5 years in a managerial position.
• Experience working for a brokerage firm, bank, investment company, depositary institution or another regulated financial institution.
• Practical experience in building, implementing and scaling operational processes within a financial company.
• In-depth understanding of the complete brokerage transaction lifecycle: onboarding, receipt of a client order, execution, confirmation, settlement, custody, record-keeping and reconciliation.
• Experience in organising the recording, safekeeping and reconciliation of client funds and financial instruments.
• Understanding of processes for servicing retail and institutional clients.
• Experience in managing client operations, a Sales Desk, Client Support, Back Office or a Safekeeping function.
• Knowledge of Georgian financial regulation, including the requirements of the National Bank of Georgia applicable to brokerage firms, the protection and segregation of client assets, record-keeping and reporting.
• Understanding of international approaches and best practices, including MiFID II, best execution, outsourcing, operational resilience and the protection of clients’ interests.
• Fluency in Georgian, English and Russian.

• Designing, documenting and implementing end-to-end operational processes.
• Managing the Sales Desk and Safekeeping Department.
• Organising custody, record-keeping, settlement, asset transfer and reconciliation processes.
• Managing client servicing and monitoring the quality of the client experience.
• Developing operational regulations, SLAs, KPIs and control procedures.
• Organising the daily reconciliation of client funds and the periodic reconciliation of financial instruments.
• Understanding the principles governing the segregation of client assets from the Company’s own assets.
• Managing operational incidents, analysing their causes and implementing corrective actions.
• Process mapping, gap analysis, root cause analysis and business process optimisation.
• Managing change and cross-functional projects.
• Understanding of trading platforms, back-office systems, CRM, KYC/onboarding solutions and client asset record-keeping systems.
• Operational data analysis; advanced Excel skills, with knowledge of SQL and BI tools considered an advantage.
• Preparing management reports, policies, procedures and analytical materials for the Board / CEO / Management.
• Effective collaboration with IT, Risk Management, Compliance, AML, Finance, Legal and Internal Audit.
• Ability to make decisions under high operational workloads and tight deadlines.
• Experience in building operational infrastructure within a developing company or scaling processes during a period of rapid growth will be an advantage.

• Developing and implementing Rioni Capital’s operational strategy in accordance with the Company’s business model and development plans.
• Managing the Sales Desk, including Retail Clients, Institutional Clients, Marketing and Client Support.
• Managing the Safekeeping Department, including custody of client assets, record-keeping, reconciliation and asset transfers.
• Organising and improving the complete client servicing lifecycle, from application submission and onboarding to transaction processing and subsequent support.
• Ensuring the reliability of processes for receiving, verifying, transmitting, executing and recording client orders.
• Organising trade settlement processes and the safekeeping and record-keeping of client funds and financial instruments.
• Ensuring the segregation of client assets and compliance with the established rules governing their use.
• Overseeing the daily reconciliation of client funds, the periodic reconciliation of financial instruments and the timely resolution of identified discrepancies.
• Coordinating interaction with banks, brokers, custodians, trading platforms, liquidity providers and other external counterparties.
• Developing and implementing operational policies, procedures, control mechanisms, SLAs and KPIs.
• Ensuring that operational processes are scalable in line with growth in the client base, assets and transaction volumes.
• Working with IT on the implementation and development of the trading platform, client portal, back-office systems, CRM, KYC/onboarding solutions and integrations with external providers.
• Defining business requirements for automation, participating in acceptance testing and monitoring the operational readiness for the launch of new functions.
• Participating in the development and launch of new products by assessing their operational feasibility, required resources and control mechanisms.
• Ensuring the performance of the operational component of the KYC/CDD process while preserving the independent authority of AML and Compliance to conduct checks and assessments and make decisions.
• Organising the processing of client requests, enquiries and complaints in cooperation with Compliance and other responsible departments.
• Overseeing operational incidents and ensuring their registration, escalation, impact remediation and the implementation of corrective measures.
• Working with the CRO and CTO on business continuity, BCP/DRP testing and crisis preparedness.
• Preparing regular and ad hoc operational reports for the Board / CEO / Management.
• Building a strong operations team, ensuring employee training and developing a culture of quality, accountability and client focus.