Job Description

Empowering Africa's tomorrow, together...one story at a time.
With over 100 years of rich history and strongly positioned as a local bank with regional and international expertise, a career with our family offers the opportunity to be part of this exciting growth journey, to reset our future and shape our destiny as a proudly African group.
Job Summary Lead the strategic development, direction, design, and execution of the Fraud Risk Strategy across all lending products within Business Banking. This includes oversight of fraud prevention, detection, and response frameworks for (e.g. term loans, overdrafts, trade finance, commercial asset finance, revolving credit facilities, AVMS etc). The role ensures that fraud risks associated with the full lending lifecycle is effectively identified, prevented, and mitigated, while enabling responsible growth and maintaining regulatory compliance.

Key accountabilities
Fraud Strategy Leadership

• Develop and execute a comprehensive lending fraud strategy aligned to the bank's overall business and risk objectives.

• Lead the design and implementation of fraud prevention, detection, and response frameworks across all Business Banking lending products.

• Define and monitor the fraud risk appetite for lending portfolios, ensuring it is aligned to strategic and operational targets.

• Drive a data and intelligence led approach to managing emerging lending fraud threats.

Fraud Risk Governance

• Establish and maintain governance structures for oversight of lending-related fraud risks.

• Serve as the key fraud representative in relevant risk and product committees.

• Ensure compliance with regulatory obligations and internal fraud policies and standards.

• Oversee periodic fraud risk assessments, scenario analyses, and stress testing for lending portfolios.

Fraud Prevention & Control Design

• Partner with Credit Risk, Product, and Operations to design robust front-end fraud controls during customer onboarding and credit application processes.

• Implement end-to-end control frameworks across disbursement, limit management, and collections functions.

• Ensure fraud risk is embedded into product design, digital platforms, and process automation initiatives.

• Define and maintain KYC, authentication, and validation standards tailored to lending channels.

Detection, Analytics & Intelligence

• Oversee the development of advanced data analytics and behavioural models to detect loan application and disbursement fraud (e.g., identity theft, synthetic identities, collusion, first-party fraud, and mule activity).

• Champion the use of AI/ML tools for early detection of anomalies and proactive intervention.

• Maintain close collaboration with Data Science and Technology to enhance system rules, thresholds, and scoring models.

• Leverage internal and external intelligence networks to identify and mitigate emerging threats.

Incident & Portfolio Management

• Lead strategic reviews of material lending fraud cases and losses to identify control failures and process improvement opportunities.

• Track and analyse portfolio level fraud trends, loss ratios, and false positive rates.

• Ensure implementation of corrective and preventive actions following incident investigations.

• Manage escalations and support senior management during regulatory or audit reviews.

People & Stakeholder Leadership

• Build and lead a high-performing team of fraud strategy professionals, analysts, and subject matter experts.

• Foster strong partnerships with Credit, Operations, Collections, Legal, Compliance, and Technology teams.

• Influence senior stakeholders to ensure fraud risk is proactively considered in strategic initiatives.

• Promote a fraud risk aware culture throughout the business banking ecosystem.

Preferred Education

• Bachelor's degree in Risk Management, Finance, Accounting, Economics, Statistics or related discipline (Master's preferred).

• CFE (Certified Fraud Examiner) advantageous

Preferred Experience

• 10+ years' experience in Fraud Risk Management or Credit Risk, with significant exposure to lending products in a banking environment.

• Proven track record in designing and executing fraud prevention strategies for business banking lending.

• Deep understanding of lending processes, credit lifecycle, and associated fraud typologies (application fraud, first-party fraud, identity theft, document fraud, collusion, etc.).

• Familiarity with fraud detection and case management systems (e.g., Instinct, Falcon).

• Strong working knowledge of regulatory requirements and governance frameworks related to fraud and financial crime

Knowledge and Skills

• Commercial Mindset (Senior) - Level 4

• Strategic Leadership - Level 4.

• Technical Expertise - Level 4

• Analytical Thinking - Level 4

• Stakeholder Influence - Level 4.

• Innovation & Change Leadership - Level 4

Education
Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)
Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.
Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised

Skills Required