Associate Director - Connected Banking

About the Team:

Join PayU's elite Startup Vertical, where we're building the next generation of embedded financial services with entrepreneurial agility and fintech expertise. Our Connected Banking team is at the forefront of transforming India's disbursements landscape, bridging our robust acquiring business with innovative credit solutions. We operate with startup speed while leveraging PayU's scale, focused on capturing significant market share through our strategic "Build, Partner, Buy" approach.

About the Role:

We are seeking a highly strategic and execution-driven Associate Director of Connected Banking to lead our Go-To-Market strategy for Payouts and Account Verification Services (AVS). You will spearhead our ambitious mission to capture 15-20% market share of the non-bank disbursements market by FY29, driving revenue growth from Serviceable Available Market. This role combines strategic thinking with hands-on execution, positioning you as the business owner responsible for scaling our Connected Banking vertical and increasing merchant LTV by 6x.

Responsibilities:

P&L Leadership & Revenue Growth

• Own complete P&L responsibility for Connected Banking and Payouts vertical with aggressive revenue targets
• Drive cross-selling of bundled "Collections + Payouts" solutions to top 10% gateway merchants
• Develop and implement pricing strategies transitioning from transaction fees to premium value-added services

Strategic Partnership Development

• Drive "Invisible Rail" partner strategy through deep API integrations with leading platforms
• Forge embedded finance partnerships with HRMS platforms (Keka, GreytHR, SAP, Darwinbox) for payroll solutions
• Build strategic alliances with ERP software providers (Zoho, Tally, CashFlo) for AP automation
• Develop and manage supply-side bank partnerships for B2B business expansion

Credit-Linked Financial Products

• Collaborate with PayU Finance (LazyPay) to launch Working Capital as a Service offerings
• Commercialize dynamic overdraft solutions based on real-time gateway collections data
• Shift monetization model from basic API fees to high-margin Net Interest Margins (NIM)
• Drive innovation in credit-linked payout solutions as key market differentiator

M&A Integration & Business Development

• Partner with Corporate Development on strategic acquisitions integration (Banking-as-a-Service, PA-CB platforms)
• Compress GTM timelines from 18-24 months to 90 days through acquisition enablement
• Lead due diligence and integration planning for Connected Banking ecosystem expansion

Product Strategy & Engineering Collaboration

• Champion "Banking DNA" transformation from pass-through gateway to 99.999% uptime sub-ledger architecture
• Drive product prioritization for developer-friendly experience including Composite Payout APIs and self-serve sandboxes
• Collaborate with Product & Engineering teams on technical roadmap and feature development

Enterprise Sales Leadership

• Serve as primary Subject Matter Expert for Enterprise Solution Architects
• Lead complex financial workflow sales (TDS, invoices, Maker-Checker approvals) to CFOs and finance leaders
• Develop sales collateral and training programs for enterprise solution selling

Requirements:

Essential Qualifications:

• 8-12 years of progressive experience in B2B fintech, connected banking, corporate strategy, or enterprise partnerships
• Proven track record of scaling API-based financial products and achieving aggressive revenue targets
• Deep domain expertise in Indian disbursements and verification ecosystem including e-commerce refunds, gig economy payouts, and digital lending
• Strong commercial acumen with experience in unit economics, pricing strategy, and P&L management
• Regulatory knowledge of RBI frameworks including Payment Aggregator (PA), PA-Cross Border (PA-CB), and NPCI UPI guidelines
• Strategic thinking ability with experience in "Build vs. Buy vs. Partner" decision-making and M&A ecosystems

Preferred Qualifications:

• Fintech startup experience with hands-on scaling of financial services products
• Banking or financial services background with understanding of sub-ledger architecture and banking operations
• Partnership development experience with SaaS platforms and enterprise software providers
• Credit and lending domain knowledge particularly in working capital and overdraft solutions
• Technical understanding of APIs, developer experience, and financial technology infrastructure

Specialized Knowledge:

• E-Commerce and Digital Payments: Refund processing, transaction routing, compliance requirements
• Gig Economy Solutions: Reverse Penny Drop, payout routing, regulatory compliance for marketplace platforms
• Real Money Gaming (RMG): Compliance frameworks, payout requirements, regulatory considerations
• Corporate Finance: TDS management, invoice processing, approval workflows, CFO-level solution selling

Key Competencies

• Entrepreneurial mindset with startup agility and corporate execution capability
• Strategic vision combined with hands-on operational excellence
• Relationship building with ability to influence C-level stakeholders and technical teams
• Cross-functional collaboration across Product, Engineering, Legal, and Business Development
• Data-driven approach with strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Market intelligence with deep understanding of fintech competitive landscape

What we offer?

• A positive, get-things-done workplace
• A dynamic, constantly evolving space (change is par for the course – important you are comfortable with this)
• An inclusive environment that ensures we listen to a diverse range of voices when making decisions.
• Ability to learn cutting edge concepts and innovation in an agile start-up environment with a global scale
• Access to 5000+ training courses accessible anytime/anywhere to support your growth and development (Corporate with top learning partners like Harvard, Coursera, Udacity)

About us:

PayU, India's leading diversified fintech platform with Prosus as an investor, operates businesses that are regulated by the Reserve Bank of India and offers advanced solutions to meet the digital financial services needs of customers (merchants, banks, and consumers).

PayU provides payment gateway solutions to online businesses through its cutting-edge and award-winning technology and has empowered 4.5 lakhs+ businesses, including India’s leading enterprises, e-commerce giants and SMBs. It enables businesses to collect digital payments across 100+ online payment methods such as Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Net Banking, EMIs, pay-later, QR, UPI, Wallets, and more. It’s a preferred partner in the affordability ecosystem, offering the maximum coverage of issuers and easy-to-implement integrations across card-based EMIs, pay-later options and new-age cardless EMIs. PayU offers e-commerce brands best-in-industry success rates while ensuring a seamless checkout experience. PayU’s through its PayTech division, Wibmo provides market leading authentication and risk TSP services to leading banks in India and 30+ countries and through its NBFC, PayU Finance, it empowers 3.5 lakh+ merchants and 6 million consumers offering innovative and flexible credit solutions. Please visit: www.payu.in  for more information.

Our Commitment to Building A Diverse and Inclusive Workforce

As a global and multi-cultural organization with varied ethnicities thriving across locations, we realize that our responsibility towards fulfilling the D&I commitment is huge. Therefore, we continuously strive to create a diverse, inclusive, and safe environment, for all our people, communities, and customers. Our leaders are committed to create an inclusive work culture which enables transparency, flexibility, and unbiased attention to every PayUneer so they can succeed, irrespective of gender, color, or personal faith. An environment where every person feels they belong, that they are listened to, and where they are empowered to speak up. At PayU we have zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice whether a specific race, ethnicity, or of persons with disabilities, or the LGBTQ communities.