Director - AI / Innovation

Finastra International Limited; City of London; Hybrid; GBP 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

A financial technology company in London is looking for a Director of AI & Innovation to lead AI strategy and innovation for its Universal Banking Group. The role focuses on embedding AI and machine learning in banking solutions, driving AI initiatives, and ensuring responsible AI adoption. Candidates should have 10+ years of experience in product innovation or technology strategy, particularly in financial services, and a strong understanding of AI/ML architectures. This full-time position offers hybrid working arrangements and various benefits.

Benefits

Unlimited vacation

Access to therapy and coaching

Medical and life insurance

Qualifications

• 10+ years in product innovation or technology strategy roles.
• Experience delivering AI solutions in banking or fintech.
• Strong understanding of modern AI/ML architectures.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead the AI & innovation roadmap for Universal Banking products.
• Collaborate with product managers to commercialize AI-powered features.
• Establish a scalable, ethical data framework for AI models.

Skills

AI/ML experience

Product innovation

Leadership

Data strategy

Stakeholder engagement

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or related field

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

Azure

AWS

TensorFlow

PyTorch

Job description

Overview

The Director of AI & Innovation for Finastra’s Universal Banking Group is a strategic leadership role focused on AI strategy development. This role requires defining and working with the teams to implement the AI strategy aligned with business objectives, identifying opportunities to enhance efficiency, customer experience and revenue streams. It will require embedding AI, machine learning, and emerging technologies into the next generation of core banking, lending, and payments solutions. Define and execute the AI innovation roadmap, leading cross-functional initiatives that transform traditional banking products into intelligent, data-driven, and customer-centric platforms. Working at the intersection of product strategy, data science, and regulatory technology, the Director will spearhead the development of scalable AI capabilities—ranging from intelligent automation to predictive insights—while ensuring responsible and ethical AI adoption. This role will also serve as a key evangelist, partnering with internal stakeholders, clients, and fintech partners to drive Finastra’s vision of open, intelligent finance.

Key Responsibilities

• AI Strategy & Innovation Leadership: Define and lead the AI & innovation roadmap for Universal Banking products, including Essence, Digital, Analytics, and Payments platforms.
• Champion the adoption of AI/ML across product lines to deliver intelligent automation, predictive analytics, smart decisioning, risk modeling, and customer personalization.
• Drive adoption of AI initiatives in the business unit.
• Work closely with the Finastra Data team, Innovation Office, and cloud teams to scale use of generative AI and large language models (LLMs) in core banking applications.

Product Development & Experimentation

• Collaborate with product managers, data scientists, and engineers to conceptualize, prototype, and commercialize AI-powered features.
• Lead agile innovation cycles (ideation, proof of concept, MVP, go-to-market) with measurable business outcomes.
• Architect scalable AI/ML platforms and infrastructure, working on the pricing and regulatory aspects of AI solutions.

Data Strategy & Responsible AI

• Establish a scalable, ethical data framework for training and deploying AI models, aligned with data privacy, explainability, and model governance standards.
• Ensure AI deployments meet industry and regulatory requirements, particularly in high-stakes areas such as credit scoring, KYC, AML, and customer interactions.

Stakeholder Engagement & Thought Leadership

• Serve as an internal evangelist for AI innovation—engaging with senior leaders, clients, and partners to promote understanding of emerging technologies and their practical application in universal banking.
• Represent Finastra in external forums, conferences, and consortiums related to AI in financial services.

Required Qualifications

• 10+ years in product innovation, data science, or technology strategy roles, with at least 3–5 years focused on AI/ML in financial services.
• Proven experience delivering AI solutions in banking or fintech, ideally across core banking, lending, or payments.
• Strong understanding of modern AI/ML architectures, cloud platforms (e.g., Azure, AWS), and generative AI frameworks.
• Ability to lead cross-functional innovation teams and manage AI product development lifecycle—from ideation to launch.
• Experience working in or with regulated financial environments; understanding of responsible AI principles.
• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, data science, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with Core Banking platforms.
• Understanding of tools like TensorFlow, PyTorch, Azure AI Studio, and familiarity with cloud platforms and big data technologies.
• Knowledge of MLOps, predictive modeling, and high performance computing infrastructures.
• Experience leading strategic partnerships with fintechs, academic institutions, or AI startups.
• Strategic thinking and problem solving to drive innovation and practical business and customer needs.
• Understanding of regulatory requirements like GDPR, EU AI Act, California AI Act, etc.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, including executive-level presentations.

Benefits

• Flexibility: Unlimited vacation (based on location and business priorities), hybrid working arrangements, and policies for voting, bereavement, and sick leave.
• Well-being: Access confidential one-on-one therapy, coaching via a coaching app, and support resources.
• Medical, life & disability insurance, retirement plan, and other benefits.
• ESG: Volunteer time off and donation matching.
• DEI: Multiple groups for open involvement.
• Career Development: Online learning and accredited courses via the Skills & Career Navigator tool.
• Recognition: Global recognition program and regular employee surveys.
• Specific benefits may vary by location.

Additional

Be unique, be exceptional, and help us make a difference at Finastra!

Seniority level

• Director

Employment type

• Full-time

Job function

• Engineering and Information Technology

London, United Kingdom — posting details vary; refer to the current posting for location.