Payment Program Manager

Our Payment Programs team designs, launches, and runs Pliant's card programs across Europe and the US. This includes our own commercial card products and the programs we build with banking and fintech partners.

As a Payment Program Manager, you'll own card program implementations from start to finish. This covers scheme and partner setup, digital wallet launches, testing, and go-live. Once a program is live, you'll ensure it remains compliant and running smoothly. You'll collaborate closely with card schemes, banking partners, processors, and vendors. Internally, you'll partner with Product, Engineering, Compliance, Risk, Finance, and our Commercial teams.

This is a hands-on individual contributor role, ideal for someone who has already taken several card programs live, can manage them independently, and seeks real ownership in a fast-growing fintech.

What You’ll Do

Card Program Implementation

• Lead the launch of new card programs, products, markets, and currencies, from scoping and requirements through to production release.
• Manage scheme and partner onboarding across Visa and Mastercard, including BIN and product setup, and the related scheme submissions.
• Plan and coordinate end-to-end testing with partners and sign off programs before launch.
• Coordinate physical and virtual card launches, including card design approvals and production with external vendors.

Digital Wallets & Tokenisation

• Drive digital wallet launches such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, from issuer onboarding and certification through to go-live.
• Extend existing wallet programs to new products, BINs, and markets.
• Monitor wallet and tokenisation performance and resolve issues with partners.

Compliance & Program Health

• Keep programs aligned with scheme rules, mandates, and new releases, translating changes into clear actions.
• Contribute to recurring scheme and partner reporting.
• Collaborate with Compliance and Fraud teams on program-level controls and support escalations and audits.

Stakeholder & Project Management

• Serve as the main point of contact for programs, both internally and externally.
• Translate business and partner needs into clear requirements for Product & Engineering.
• Manage multiple projects in parallel, track dependencies and risks, and provide clear, regular updates to stakeholders.

Continuous Improvement

• Improve and document program launch and management processes to make them faster and more repeatable.
• Use AI and automation tools to reduce manual work across the team.

What You’ll Bring

• 4–7 years of experience in payments, including at least 3 years of hands-on card program implementation at an issuer, processor, program manager, or card-issuing fintech.
• Hands-on experience launching and managing programs with both Visa and Mastercard.
• Experience launching digital wallets and tokenisation, ideally including an Apple Pay issuer launch.
• A solid understanding of the card lifecycle, including authorisation, clearing, settlement, 3DS, and tokenisation, as well as physical card production.
• A track record of delivering several multi-stakeholder projects simultaneously, with clear ownership and reporting.
• Technical fluency, comfortable with API documentation, transaction data, test results, and daily collaboration with engineers.
• A structured, proactive approach to work, flagging risks early and documenting as you go.
• Fluent English, both written and spoken.

Nice to Have

• An established network within the card schemes and the wider issuing ecosystem.
• Experience with commercial card products, such as corporate, travel, or virtual cards, and multi-currency programs.
• Exposure to European and Global card programs.
• Proficient SQL or data analysis skills.