Principal Officer, GIFT City, India

About the role

The Principal Officer manages the governance, regulatory relationships, and operational functions for our GIFT City entity. You will ensure our capital market activities remain compliant with IFSCA standards while supporting business growth and daily operational efficiency. This position requires a leader who can navigate complex regulatory landscapes while maintaining a sharp focus on operational excellence. You will own the end to end compliance lifecycle for the entity, translating regulatory expectations into executable processes. The role demands a proactive approach to risk management and a commitment to upholding the highest standards of corporate governance. You will be instrumental in building robust frameworks that protect the firm and instill confidence in regulators and partners. Success in this role will be measured by clean audit outcomes, timely regulatory responses, and the seamless execution of financial operations.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Direct the governance and operational management of the company within GIFT City, ensuring all activities align with strategic objectives and regulatory standards.
• Act as the primary point of contact for IFSCA, stock exchanges, and other regulatory bodies, including handling inquiries, inspections, and formal communications with professionalism and precision.
• Manage daily financial operations such as trade settlements, client money handling, remittances, and reconciliations to ensure accuracy and adherence to legal mandates.
• Maintain strict segregation of client assets and funds according to regulatory mandates, implementing controls to prevent commingling and ensure asset protection.
• Oversee KYC, AML procedures, client onboarding, and transaction monitoring, establishing vigilant processes to detect and report suspicious activities.
• Coordinate with auditors to ensure timely completion of audit processes, providing necessary documentation and insights to facilitate a smooth and efficient audit cycle.
• Implement and maintain standard operating procedures for regulatory and operational tasks, documenting workflows to ensure consistency and scalability.
• Work with product, technology, and business teams to support new product launches and partner integrations, ensuring compliance requirements are embedded from the outset.
• Monitor regulatory updates and interpret changes to IFSCA frameworks, translating them into actionable policies and training for the operations team.
• Lead internal investigations or corrective actions when discrepancies are identified, driving resolution and implementing preventative measures to mitigate future risk.
• Serve as a subject matter expert within the organization, providing guidance to cross-functional departments on regulatory matters impacting capital market activities.
• Foster a culture of compliance and integrity across the entity by mentoring staff and promoting adherence to ethical standards in all financial operations.
• Liaise with external legal and compliance advisors to ensure the entity's governance framework remains robust and defensible.
• Prepare and present detailed regulatory reports and performance metrics to senior leadership, ensuring transparency and data-driven decision making.

Requirements

• Professional qualification as a member of ICAI, ICSI, or ICMAI, or a post-graduate degree/diploma (minimum one year) in finance, law, accountancy, business management, commerce, economics, capital markets, banking, insurance, actuarial science, fintech, science, technology, engineering, or mathematics, plus at least 3 years of experience in financial services.
• Alternatively, a graduation degree in any field from a recognized university plus at least 5 years of experience in financial services.
• Deep knowledge of capital market regulations, specifically IFSCA frameworks and corporate governance, including an understanding of the regulatory philosophy and intent.
• Proven ability to handle complex operational processes with high accuracy, demonstrating meticulous attention to detail and problem solving capabilities.
• Strong stakeholder management skills for interacting with regulators and internal teams, including the capacity to communicate clearly and assertively under pressure.
• Demonstrated experience in managing regulatory relationships and responding effectively to inspections, inquiries, and audits.
• Solid understanding of financial operations, including trade life cycle, settlement cycles, and client money management principles.
• Commitment to maintaining the highest standards of ethics, confidentiality, and compliance in all aspects of the role.

Nice to have

• Extensive experience in capital markets operations within regulated environments, including exposure to multi jurisdictional frameworks where applicable.

Practical notes

• Candidates must be based in GIFT City, India. Remote work outside of this location is not available.
• Applicants must possess the legal right to work in India at the time of application.
• Compensation includes base salary, bonus, equity, and a benefits package.
• DriveWealth does not accept unsolicited agency resumes.