Head of Legal & Compliance, Sygnum Europe (Liechtenstein)

Job description: Head of Legal & Compliance, Sygnum Europe (Liechtenstein)

About the role

The Head of Legal & Compliance is responsible for shaping and implementing Sygnum Europe's legal and compliance strategy, ensuring the company meets evolving regulatory requirements and industry standards in the fast-moving digital asset space. This role combines strategic leadership with direct oversight, including building and mentoring a high performing team. The Head of Legal & Compliance acts as a key advisor to senior management, providing expert advice on regulatory matters such as MiCAR, DORA and financial regulation implementation, whilst ensuring robust risk management and governance frameworks. By ensuring the resilience of the organization and maintaining the confidence of clients, regulators and counterparties, this role plays a central part in enabling Sygnum Europe's sustainable growth and regulatory excellence. The Head of Legal & Compliance is a member of the Executive Board of Sygnum Europe and reports to the CEO of Sygnum Europe.

Main tasks:

• Building, leading and managing Sygnum Europe's legal and compliance functions, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability and continuous learning.
• Tracking the evolving regulatory landscape in Liechtenstein and the EU, proactively monitoring changes and ensuring compliance with applicable laws and internal regulations.
• Work with business units to align legal and compliance strategies with operational and strategic objectives.
• Design and deliver training programs to educate employees on relevant laws and regulations and industry practices to ensure effective knowledge transfer.

Compliance:

• Drive the development and continuous improvement of the compliance framework, guidelines and corresponding controls in an international environment.
• Acting as Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO), investigating client accounts and suspicious activities, gathering relevant information for the reporting process, working with other departments (e.g. Client Services) to complete investigations and preparing and submitting SARs/STRs to the Liechtenstein FIU.
• Drive compliance and regulatory projects associated with strategic developments, including process design and implementation, balancing strict regulatory requirements with a business-oriented approach.
• Oversee all aspects of the compliance function and client lifecycle, including client onboarding due diligence, transaction monitoring, sanctions screening, ongoing monitoring, drafting and maintenance of internal compliance policies and procedures.

Right:

• Legal advice in a highly regulated environment for general corporate and regulatory matters.
• Evaluating new business concepts, products and innovative ideas from a legal and regulatory perspective, ensuring that they are based on a solid legal framework.
• Drafting and negotiating business contracts, providing consulting support for all business areas.
• Management of all types of legal proceedings, including court proceedings, and coordination with external lawyers.

Ideal candidate:

• Master of Laws from a university in Liechtenstein, Switzerland or the EU (including a university of applied sciences); legal examination is a strong plus.
• 8+ years in a senior, leadership legal and/or compliance role in the financial services industry.
• Successful leadership of high performing teams in fast-paced environments, experience of building and implementing robust compliance frameworks, ideally in an international context.
• Strong compliance experience.
• Expert knowledge of AML/KYC/CFTF regulations and best practices in Liechtenstein, with a strong understanding of Switzerland and EU regulations (MiCAR, DORA etc.) as a significant advantage, as well as the latest trends in compliance, Fintech and RegTech industry as well as crypto/digital assets and blockchain.
• Proven ability to work independently, navigate complex regulatory landscapes with