Payment Operations Specialist

**About Flinks**:
Flinks drives and empowers financial innovation by pushing the limits of what's possible

As one of the trailblazers and advocates for open finance in Canada, Flinks has rapidly grown from its founding in 2016 to become a leader in financial data aggregation, data enrichment, and open banking.

Trusted by millions of individuals accessing financial services at world-class companies and serving innovators in lending, fintech, digital banking, asset management and insurance, Flinks is continually setting new benchmarks for the future of financial innovation. We’re dedicated to continuing to provide our clients with the tools they need to stay ahead of the competition and drive innovation forward. That’s where you come in.

**About the Team**:
The Payment Operations Specialist is responsible for executing and monitoring the daily flow of payments, ensuring that transactions move smoothly between end-user accounts, Flinks systems, and external financial institutions.

This role owns the day-to-day movement of money for Flinks products — processing payments, reconciling accounts, clearing exceptions (such as failed debits or reversals), and coordinating with banking partners and internal teams. The Specialist also analyzes transaction data to ensure pricing is optimized and acts as a strategic partner in understanding how product performance and usage impact overall business results.

Finance is the functional owner of Payment Operations, with Product and Technology supporting through automation, tooling, and incident resolution. The Payment Operations Specialist ensures that all money movements are executed accurately, on time, and in compliance with financial and regulatory standards.

**What You’ll Do**:

- (Grouped by functional area for clarity)_

- **Daily Operations**- Monitor payment queues, file submissions, and settlements; trigger retries or reversals as needed.
- Ensure settlement files are sent and received within expected timelines and banking windows.

- **Reconciliation**- Match transactions between Flinks’ internal ledger, processor reports, and client records (“end-to-end” reconciliation).
- Identify and resolve mismatches quickly and document outcomes.

- **Exception Handling**- Investigate failed, delayed, or mismatched transactions; manage incident reports; work with Product and Tech to address root causes.

- **Client Coordination**- Communicate with clients on payment exceptions or recovery efforts; provide clear, timely updates with professional tone and empathy.

- **Risk & Compliance**- Monitor for unusual transaction patterns or limits being exceeded; escalate any suspected fraud or regulatory issues to the Risk/Compliance team.
- Follow policies related to AML (Anti-Money Laundering), KYC (Know Your Customer), and ATF (Anti-Terrorist Financing) procedures.

- **Reporting & Analytics**- Produce daily and weekly reports summarizing payment performance, failures, exceptions, and aged transactions.
- Produce ad hoc reports for the finance team related to payment operations for billing and recovery purposes.
- Analyze transaction data to refine Flinks’ financial models, support strategic decision-making, and optimize pricing and operational performance.

- **Continuous Improvement**- Maintain and improve Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
- Identify automation opportunities (templates, alerts, scripts) to reduce manual work.
- Collaborate with Engineering and Product to streamline tools and data flows.

**Who You Are**:

- 3-5 years of experience in **payment operations or fintech operations**, managing reconciliations, settlements, and transaction processing from start to finish.
- Strong working knowledge of **banking and payment networks** such as EFT, ACH, and wire transfers - you understand how money actually moves.
- Hands-on experience investigating **exceptions and failed transactions**, including NSFs, reversals, and mismatched settlements.
- Highly analytical with exceptional attention to detail - you catch discrepancies before they become issues.
- Advanced proficiency in **Excel or Google Sheets**; able to build reports, automate checks, and analyze transaction data with ease.
- Familiarity with **SQL** or other data query tools to extract and validate financial information.
- Excellent communicator and collaborator - equally comfortable working with **clients, internal teams, and banking partners** to resolve issues quickly and professionally.
- Proven ability to **analyze payment trends**, identify opportunities to improve processes, and support strategic decision-making through data insights.
- A proactive problem-solver who thrives in a fast-paced, high-volume environment and takes ownership of outcomes.

**Nice to haves**:

- Experience with **chargebacks, disputes, fraud detection, or BI dashboards** to enhance visibility and control.
- Interest in compliance and regulations relating to payments and transactions.
- Ability to **understand**, **impleme