Who we are:
Zilch is a payment tech company on a mission to create the most empowering way to pay for anything, anywhere. Combining the best of debit, credit and savings, we give our customers the option to earn instant cashback or spread the cost of pricier purchases, completely interest free and with no late fees. Pretty great, right?
We started in 2018 with a small team and a big dream - to make credit accessible to all. Since then, we've achieved double unicorn status and taken on more than 5 million customers. There are some exciting projects coming up and we’ve got big growth plans.
Want to join us?
About the role:
We're looking for someone who can build Zilch's external partnership strategy from the ground up, not someone who manages a partner roster they've inherited, and not someone who only closes deals other people have framed up.
You'll work out who Zilch should be aligned with and why, build the commercial logic for that, and then see it through: proposals, business cases, and working with Product, Finance and Compliance to actually bring a partnership to life. You won't be expected to arrive with a black book of contacts ready to close, we can teach deal mechanics. What we can't teach is the judgement to spot the right partnership and the rigour to structure it properly.
You'll operate across two parallel tracks: accelerating distribution of Zilch's existing proposition through embedded, high-value partner relationships, and building new revenue streams by licensing Zilch's core capabilities into new products, models and markets. You'll work directly with the VP of Partnerships, with high visibility into the C-suite.
The strategy doesn't exist yet. If you've spent your career running other people's playbooks, this isn't the right role. If you're someone who can look at a market, work out where Zilch has a right to win, and build the thinking and the relationships from scratch, read on
Day to day responsibilities
Strategy and market thesis
Mapping the market: financial services, fintech, payments infrastructure, retail, platforms and beyond to identify which partnership categories genuinely fit Zilch's brand and commercial position, using your own judgement rather than a provided list
Building a clear point of view on who we should be partnering with and why, and translating that into a prioritised strategy
Iterating that strategy as you learn what works, rather than treating the first draft as fixed
Proposal development and deal structuring
Building commercial proposals and business cases from scratch — defining the model, sizing the opportunity, and making the argument internally and externally
Structuring novel commercial arrangements: embedded finance, co-brands, integrations and others
Working with Legal, Finance, Product and Engineering to bring deals to life without losing momentum — this is as much about internal orchestration as external negotiation
Relationship building and execution
Originating relationships at senior and C-suite level, building credibility as a serious commercial counterpart
Owning flagship partnerships through their full lifecycle, from first conversation to go-live
Converting proven partnership models into documented playbooks that Sales or Marketing can scale
What We Are Looking For...
Strong strategic and analytical thinking able to look at a market, form a view on where the opportunity is, and build a structured business case for it
Experience building something from scratch in a commercial context: a strategy, a proposition, a partnership model, a new function not just optimising an existing one
Comfort operating cross-functionally with Product, Finance, Compliance and Legal to deliver something complex, particularly in a regulated or technically intricate space such as credit, lending or payments
Confidence operating at C-suite and senior stakeholder level, both internally and externally
Strong commercial modelling skills able to size an opportunity and stress-test a structure
Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to build a proposal that lands with senior stakeholders
Experience in or alongside a high-growth or scale-up environment, comfortable with pace and ambiguity
A degree in a quantitative, analytical or commercial discipline (STEM, Finance, Economics, Accounting or Business) from a strong academic institution
Bonus skills
A background in strategy or management consulting, ideally followed by an in-house move into partnerships, corporate strategy or corp dev
Prior experience in partnerships, corp dev or 0-to-1 strategy roles at another fintech, platform or high-growth business
Familiarity with embedded finance, retail partnerships or financial infrastructure licensing models
A second European language, useful as the function expands across markets
What will help you succeed
This isn't a traditional partnerships role centred on managing an existing portfolio or executing against a pre-defined pipeline. Success in this role comes from identifying opportunities, developing the commercial strategy behind them and then building the relationships needed to bring them to life. Relationship management and negotiation are important, but they're built on strategic thinking and commercial judgement rather than replacing them
Benefits.
Compensation & Savings:
Health & Wellbeing:
Private Medical Insurance including;
GP consultations (video, telephone or face-to-face).
Prescribed medication.
In-patient, day-patient and out-patient care.
Mental health support.
Optical, dental & audiological cover.
Physiotherapy.
Advanced cancer cover.
Menopause support.
Employee Assistance Programme including:
Unlimited mental health sessions.
24/7 remote GP & physiotherapy.
24/7 helpline for emotional & practical support.
Savings & discounts on everyday shopping.
1:1 personalised well-being consultations.
Gym membership discounts.
Family Friendly Policies:
Learning & Development:
Professional Qualifications.
Professional Memberships.
Learning Suite for e-courses.
Internal Training Programmes.
FCA & Regulatory training.
Workplace Perks:
