Senior Risk Strategist - Fraud

Mercury is seeking a Senior Risk Strategist - Fraud to join its Risk Strategy team. This role involves shaping Mercury’s fraud strategy across multiple domains, combining data-driven analysis with strategic problem-solving. The strategist will partner with Product, Engineering, Operations, and Compliance to deliver scalable solutions, mitigate financial, regulatory, and reputational risks, and improve customer experience. Key responsibilities include driving strategy and execution for onboarding, card, non-card, and ATO fraud, designing controls using data, and optimizing fraud processes.

Must Have

• Drive strategy and execution across multiple fraud domains (onboarding, card, non-card, ATO)
• Use data and quantitative analysis to design fraud controls, mitigate risk, and improve customer experience while balancing trade-offs
• Partner with Compliance and Legal to ensure solutions align with regulatory requirements
• Collaborate with Product, Engineering, and Operations to design and implement scalable risk solutions
• Build domain expertise, identify gaps, and proactively optimize fraud processes
• Define and track metrics that measure both risk effectiveness and customer impact

Good to Have

• 6+ years of experience in an analytical role, including 4+ years in fraud, trust and safety, or a related risk function
• Startup or fintech experience
• Proven ability to design and execute fraud strategies across domains (e.g., onboarding, card, ACH, checks, ATO, friendly fraud)
• Skilled in customer risk scoring/modeling and process automation
• Strong SQL proficiency and ability to translate data into actionable strategy
• Track record of balancing risk, compliance, and customer experience in cross-functional settings
• Excellent communication skills to simplify complex risk concepts into clear recommendations
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity and making decisions with imperfect information
• Curious, growth-oriented, and motivated to work on fraud problems at all lifecycle stages (new product launches, scaling, and legacy optimization)

A complete finance stack for startups is being built. We work hard to create the easiest and safest banking* experience possible to simplify entrepreneurs' and business owners’ financial lives. To enable this stellar banking experience, we need to have a deep understanding of our customers and how they interact with our product. We are looking to hire a strategist to bring risk expertise and an analytical approach to our Risk Strategy team, driving impact in this crucial space.

Risk Strategy is a hybrid team that combines analytics with thought leadership to identify, assess, and mitigate the financial, regulatory, and reputational risks faced. The team focuses on data-driven insights and process improvements while ensuring a stellar customer experience that fosters trust in our platform.

As a Senior Risk Strategist focused on fraud, you’ll help shape the fraud strategy across multiple domains, combining data-driven analysis with strategic problem solving. You’ll partner closely with Product, Engineering, Operations, and Compliance to deliver scalable outcomes that enable the business and reduce fraud losses while protecting customer experience.

*A financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group, Column N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust, Members FDIC.

As part of the journey, we would expect you to:

• Drive strategy and execution across multiple fraud domains (onboarding, card, non-card, ATO)
• Use data and quantitative analysis to design fraud controls, mitigate risk, and improve customer experience while balancing trade-offs
• Partner with Compliance and Legal to ensure solutions align with regulatory requirements
• Collaborate with Product, Engineering, and Operations to design and implement scalable risk solutions
• Build domain expertise, identify gaps, and proactively optimize fraud processes
• Define and track metrics that measure both risk effectiveness and customer impact

Some things that might make you successful in a role like this:

• 6+ years of experience in an analytical role, including 4+ years in fraud, trust and safety, or a related risk function (startup or fintech experience a plus)
• Proven ability to design and execute fraud strategies across domains (e.g., onboarding, card, ACH, checks, ATO, friendly fraud)
• Skilled in customer risk scoring/modeling and process automation
• Strong SQL proficiency and ability to translate data into actionable strategy
• Track record of balancing risk, compliance, and customer experience in cross-functional settings
• Excellent communication skills to simplify complex risk concepts into clear recommendations
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity and making decisions with imperfect information
• Curious, growth-oriented, and motivated to work on fraud problems at all lifecycle stages (new product launches, scaling, and legacy optimization)

The total rewards package includes base salary, equity, and benefits.

Our salary and equity ranges are highly competitive within the SaaS and fintech industry and are updated regularly using the most reliable compensation survey data for our industry. New hire offers are made based on a candidate’s experience, expertise, geographic location, and internal pay equity relative to peers.

Our target new hire base salary ranges for this role are the following:

• US employees (any location): $166,600 - $208,300
• Canadian employees (any location): CAD $157,400 - $196,800

Diversity & belonging is valued and is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. All individuals seeking employment are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected characteristic. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process for applicants with disabilities or special needs. If you need assistance, or an accommodation, please let your recruiter know once you are contacted about a role.

Covey is used as part of our hiring and / or promotional process for jobs in NYC and certain features may qualify it as an AEDT. As part of the evaluation process we provide Covey with job requirements and candidate submitted applications. We began using Covey Scout for Inbound on January 22, 2024. Please see the independent bias audit report covering our use of Covey here.

#LI-JB1