Legal and Collections Manager

About Bridgement

Bridgement is breaking down the barriers to access finance for small businesses in South Africa. Traditional loans from banks and other lenders have a slow application process, have strict criteria, require a lot of documentation, and inflexible terms. In contrast, we use cutting-edge technology and artificial intelligence to offer flexible finance online, with a 2-minute application, no documentation required, and a decision in a matter of hours. We’re a well-funded fintech start-up, backed by Capricorn and the greater Yellowwoods group, best known for their investments in and ownership of Nandos, Hollard, Clientèle, Direct Axis, and Budget Group. Having won several awards, including Xero’s App of the Year award, we are proud to be recognised by worldwide brands as a trusted and valued business.

Roles & Responsibilities

As a Legal and Collections Manager, you will:

Manage Bridgement's debt collection team:

• Manage the day-to-day functions of Bridgement's internal collections team.
• Assist the collections team where required, including directly collecting from debtors.
• Train and upskill the collections team on collections process, technique, and regulatory compliance.
• Monitor individual and team performance against collections targets and KPIs.
• Be involved in bad debt provisioning sessions.
• Provide input on collections performance and legal recoverability trends to inform provisioning decisions.

Manage relationships with external law firms:

• Own the day-to-day relationship with Bridgement's panel of external law firms.
• Manage the handover of debtors to external attorneys for legal collection, ensuring all relevant documentation and account history is provided.
• Support external law firms with the information, instructions, and documentation they need to progress matters efficiently.
• Monitor the progress, timelines, and cost-effectiveness of matters placed with external attorneys.

Draft and review legal agreements:

• Draft legal agreements as required by the business.
• Review legal agreements to identify, flag, and mitigate risk to the business.
• Liaise with external legal counsel on complex, high-value, or high-risk agreements.

Own regulatory compliance:

• Own and maintain Bridgement's RMCP.
• Prepare and submit compliance documentation for FICA.
• Monitor changes in FICA, and related legislation, and update internal policies and processes accordingly.

Requirements

You will need to:

• Have a legal background, preferably with an LLB degree.
• Have 2-4 years of experience in collections and/or a legal environment.
• Be technologically proficient, with the ability to work confidently across multiple systems and tools.
• Have strong drafting and contract review skills.
• Be a confident communicator and negotiator, able to manage relationships with external law firms and lead an internal team.
• Be detail-oriented and organised, with the ability to manage compliance deadlines and documentation accurately.

It will be useful to have although not absolutely required:

• Admission as an attorney.
• Working knowledge of debt collection legislation, and FICA/AML requirements.
• Prior experience managing or contributing to an RMCP, or working in a compliance function.
• Experience in fintech, lending, or financial services.
• Familiarity with CRM or collections management systems.

Benefits

You’ll join a diverse team of smart, passionate and humble people, who are all passionate about helping grow SMEs across South Africa. In addition to a competitive salary, you’ll also get to:

• Be a part of a leading SA fintech on an exciting growth trajectory
• Join a high-performance, entrepreneurial team
• Work in a lovely, modern office in Melrose Arch with snacks, drinks and weekly team lunches.
• Access to employee benefits including life insurance, disability + critical illness, income protection and gap cover, as well as other benefits like psychological, physical, financial wellbeing and legal support