Head, Product, Structured Trade & Commodity Finance

About the role

This senior role at Liberty, based in Johannesburg, leads and defines the strategic direction of the Structured Trade and Commodity Finance (STCF) portfolio. It covers products such as pre-export finance, borrowing base facilities and inventory-backed lending, within the company's risk appetite and under strict regulatory and credit frameworks. The Head of Product shapes the full product lifecycle, from design and collateral frameworks to governance, portfolio limits and commercialisation.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and maintain the strategic product architecture for STCF, ensuring commercial scalability within defined risk appetites.
• Design methodologies, margining rules, covenant structures and reporting standards aligned with client risk profiles.
• Lead the full lifecycle of the STCF product suite, from origination and structuring through execution, monitoring, enhancement and exit.
• Set up governance frameworks, including deal templates, security packages, collateral control standards and operational risk thresholds.
• Define and monitor portfolio limits by country, obligor, commodity and ecosystem, aligned with concentration, sovereign and counterparty risk appetites.
• Create deal structuring playbooks and pricing frameworks, and drive commercialisation across target industries and client segments.
• Support sales and coverage teams in client engagement and position STCF as an enabler of trade flows.
• Monitor portfolio performance on risk-adjusted returns, RWA intensity and early-warning indicators, and lead restructuring and collateral enhancements.
• Optimise product-level capital against regulatory and liquidity requirements, and champion digitisation, automation and better documentation standards.

Required profile

• First degree in Business Commerce, with 5 to 7 years of direct experience in STCF.
• Demonstrated experience leading teams in this field and implementing systems and product solutions.
• Over 10 years of experience simplifying operational workflows across multiple jurisdictions.
• Broad knowledge of the financial services landscape, macro-economic context and relevant legislation and regulations.
• Ability to integrate ESG priorities into profitable solutions and articulate a clear value proposition.