Head of Risk & Fraud

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Head of Risk & Fraud based in Brazil.

This is a senior leadership role responsible for safeguarding trust across a high-scale digital marketplace with millions of active users. You will define and execute the end-to-end fraud and risk strategy, balancing growth enablement with strong protection against financial and behavioral abuse. The role sits at the intersection of data, product, operations, and compliance, requiring sharp decision-making and full ownership of fraud-related business outcomes. You will lead a specialized team focused on both real-time fraud defense and long-term risk strategy, including model design and partner management. Your decisions will directly impact key business metrics such as chargeback rates, approval rates, and fraud losses across multiple products. You will work closely with senior stakeholders across Product, Engineering, Finance, and Legal to ensure risk is embedded into every major initiative. This is a high-impact position for a strategic operator who thrives in fast-moving, data-driven environments.

Accountabilities

• Own the end-to-end fraud and risk P&L, including chargeback rates, payout rates, approval rates, and false-positive metrics across the business.
• Define and execute the global fraud and risk strategy, ensuring alignment with business growth, product expansion, and marketplace trust.
• Lead and develop the Risk & Fraud team, building strong second-line leadership and fostering a high-performance, data-driven culture.
• Design and deliver the fraud prevention roadmap, including build vs buy decisions, system improvements, and detection model evolution.
• Own strategic relationships with external fraud prevention partners, including SLAs, RFPs, testing frameworks, and commercial negotiations.
• Act as the key cross-functional partner to Product, Engineering, Finance, and Legal to ensure risk is embedded into new features and initiatives from the outset.
• Oversee regulatory and compliance obligations related to KYC, PSP requirements, and law enforcement requests across multiple markets.
• Serve as the final escalation point for complex fraud and risk decisions, representing the function in executive and leadership forums.

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in fraud, risk management, financial crime, or related domains in high-growth digital businesses.
• Proven leadership experience, having built or managed high-performing teams with end-to-end ownership of risk outcomes.
• Demonstrated ability to reduce fraud, chargebacks, or losses through structural and data-driven interventions.
• Strong commercial acumen, with experience managing vendors, negotiating SLAs, and owning external partnerships.
• Highly data-driven mindset with strong ability to interpret dashboards, identify root causes, and act independently; SQL or Databricks experience is a plus.
• Experience in marketplaces, fintech, payments, e-commerce, or gaming environments with high transaction volume and fraud exposure.
• Strong understanding of fraud typologies such as account takeover, promo abuse, and reseller fraud.
• Solid knowledge of compliance frameworks, including KYC, PSP regulations, and risk governance standards.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence senior stakeholders and lead cross-functional discussions in English.
• Strong leadership mindset focused on coaching, team development, and building scalable organizational structures.

Benefits

• Employee stock option program
• Performance-based bonuses and referral incentives
• Additional paid leave options
• Personal learning and development budget
• Paid volunteering opportunities
• Flexible work location (remote, office, or hybrid, with travel opportunities)
• Strong career progression in a high-growth, global marketplace environment
• Structured feedback and promotion processes supporting rapid professional development