Operations - Manager - Merchant Ops

About Us Paytm is India's leading mobile payments and financial services distribution company and a pioneer of the mobile QR payments revolution. Paytm builds technologies that empower small businesses with payments and commerce solutions. Our mission is to serve half a billion Indians and bring them into the mainstream economy through technology. About the Team The Payment Acquiring & Cross-Border (PACB) team is responsible for building and scaling merchant payment solutions across domestic acquiring and international payment corridors. The team works closely with merchants, banking partners, regulators, and internal stakeholders to deliver seamless, compliant, and scalable payment experiences. Merchant Operations serves as the backbone of this business by ensuring efficient onboarding, compliance adherence, operational excellence, and lifecycle management. About the Role We are looking for an experienced and commercially minded Manager / Senior Manager – Merchant Operations to lead the end-to-end merchant lifecycle within our Payment Acquiring & Cross-Border business. This role will own merchant onboarding, KYC/KYB operations, compliance governance, activation, settlements, reconciliations, and ongoing merchant account management. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in payments operations, strong regulatory understanding, and proven leadership experience in managing high-performing operational teams at scale. Expectations / Requirements Merchant Lifecycle Management • Own the complete merchant lifecycle, including onboarding, due diligence, KYC/KYB verification, activation, account configuration, and ongoing operational support. • Ensure merchant onboarding processes are accurate, compliant, and delivered within defined turnaround times. • Design and optimize onboarding workflows across merchant segments, risk categories, and payment corridors. • Act as the escalation point for complex onboarding cases, operational issues, and merchant disputes. Compliance & Risk Operations • Ensure adherence to KYC/KYB guidelines, RBI regulations, FEMA requirements, and cross-border compliance frameworks. • Drive periodic merchant reviews, risk-based assessments, and documentation audits. • Maintain a compliant merchant portfolio by implementing strong operational controls and governance practices. • Partner with Compliance, Risk, and Banking teams to support regulatory requirements and new business initiatives. Payment Operations & Process Excellence • Oversee operational workflows supporting payment acquiring, settlements, reconciliations, and exception management. • Monitor operational KPIs, onboarding SLAs, TATs, exception rates, and merchant activation metrics. • Lead root cause analysis (RCA) and implement corrective actions to improve operational efficiency and customer experience. • Design, document, and continuously improve SOPs and operational processes. Stakeholder & Team Leadership • Collaborate closely with Sales, Product, Compliance, Finance, Banking, and Technology teams to drive business outcomes. • Manage relationships with banking partners, vendors, and external stakeholders. • Build, mentor, and develop high-performing operations teams while fostering a culture of accountability and continuous improvement. • Drive operational planning, resource management, and cost optimization initiatives. Superpowers / Skills That Will Help You Succeed in This Role • 6–10 years of experience in payments operations, merchant acquiring, fintech, banking, or related domains. • Minimum 4 years of people management experience leading operations teams. • Strong hands-on experience in merchant onboarding, KYC/KYB operations, and merchant lifecycle management. • Deep understanding of payment acquiring, cross-border payments, settlements, and reconciliation processes. • Strong knowledge of RBI regulations, FEMA guidelines, SWIFT ecosystem, and compliance requirements. • Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with a data-driven approach to decision-making. • Advanced proficiency in Excel/Google Sheets and BI tools such as Tableau or Power BI; SQL knowledge is a plus. • Strong stakeholder management, communication, and leadership capabilities. • Six Sigma, Lean, or equivalent process improvement certifications will be an added advantage. • MBA or equivalent postgraduate qualification preferred. Why Join Us? • Opportunity to lead a critical function within one of India's largest payments ecosystems. • High ownership role with direct impact on merchant experience, operational excellence, and business growth. • Work closely with senior leadership and cross-functional teams to build scalable payment operations. • Collaborative, fast-paced, and innovation-driven work environment. • A culture that values ownership, learning, and continuous growth. Education Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Operations, Commerce, or a related discipline. MBA or equivalent postgraduate qualification preferred.