AddressBanking and Securities Operations Technician - Collateral Management and Custody Team
-(010472)
The Bank of England is the UK's central bank. Our mission is to deliver monetary and financial stability for the British people. The Bank is a diverse organisation. Each of its 4,000 people are committed to public service and dedicated to promoting the good of the people of the United Kingdom by maintaining monetary and financial stability.
An opportunity has arisen in a financial operations area, and the skills you will learn are highly transferrable across most Divisions within the Bank. This job opportunity is also a fantastic chance to engage with senior partners, people, and systems.
Directorate overview
The Banking Directorate supports the Bank’s mission of monetary and financial stability through delivering banknotes and banking services in a way that is efficient and effective; in step with a changing world; and inspires confidence and trust.
We are at the heart of the Bank, both in terms of our core role in Monetary and Financial Stability and the wide range of internal colleagues we collaborate with. The variety and immediacy of the work we do means we are one of the most outward facing areas of the Bank. We manage the Bank’s customer Banking and settlement operations; and act as the 'bank' within the Bank of England for government, UK Central Counterparties (CCPs) and other central banks. We are responsible for making sure that our banknotes have the latest anti-counterfeiting technology, this is so that people can have confidence that the banknotes they use every day are genuine. We are also responsible for ensuring that there are enough high-quality banknotes in circulation by working closely with financial institutions, banknote suppliers and retailers; and ensuring that holders of Scottish and Northern Irish notes are protected if a commercial banknote issuer defaults.
Department overview
Custody Settlement and Liquidity (CSL) is a subdivision within the Central Banking Operations Division (CBOD) acting as back office for the Bank’s Securities Operations. The business area allows the Bank to provide intraday liquidity to participants, as well as custody, securities, and settlement services in support of the Bank and Her Majesty's Treasury (HMT) foreign reserves, the Debt Management Office (DMO), and international central banks.
The Team
The CMC team sits within CSL and is responsible for the settlement of collateral in support of the Bank’s SMF and other Official Operations; settlement of custody trades on behalf of other central banks, the Debt Management Office (DMO), and other customers and the asset servicing of these securities holdings. The team has close links to the Bank’s Sterling Markets Division and Customer Banking Division and regularly interacts with other financial institutions.
The Collateral Management and Custody (CMC) Team currently comprises of; 4 Operations Technical Analysts, 8 Operations Technicians (Specialists) and 10 Operations Senior Operatives (Specialists).
About the Role
This is an exciting opportunity to develop knowledge and gain expertise in some of the Bank’s core financial operations. The role supports the timely and efficient settlement of securities, critical operational processes, and the Bank’s official operations – making it a great opportunity to develop a good understanding of a wide range of products, policies and schemes implemented by the Bank. There will also be opportunities to engage with new and exciting projects and change initiatives, working closely with a number of teams across the Bank such as the front office trading desks, middle office and operational risk.
In addition to business-as-usual operational responsibilities, we encourage innovation and new ideas to how we approach our processes, so you will be in area where you are able to make a real difference. Jobholders will work closely with other areas as well as working collaboratively within the team. You will also be given on the job training in the settlement and Collateral Management systems we use. All roles will provide opportunity to develop operational skills, increase business knowledge and engage with internal and external stakeholders.
The main job role responsibilities will include:
- Managing and monitoring of daily operations. This includes settlement of official operations, providing liquidity to the market (during both normal and stressed conditions) through regular operations, efficient settlement of a range of transactions carried out by the Bank’s Foreign Exchange Division and Sterling Markets Division, and providing asset servicing and Custody services to our clients. It will also include coordinating testing of contingency facilities to ensure smooth settlement in all operational scenarios.
- Being a source of technical expertise in all aspects of the team’s work, acting as guide and mentor to team members, providing support for team members in investigating and resolving any operational issues or queries that arise. Provide training to team members as well as providing constructive performance feedback.
- Managing change initiatives impacting business operations and systems from analysis through to delivery, both in response to front office requirements, and the team’s own initiatives. Complete the requirements for changes and improvements to systems and help implement changes through testing and reviewing test output.
- Produce and present management information on the values and volumes of the work processed by the team. Including analysis to identify trends and key drivers in the data.
- Operational excellence and continuous improvement: identify and drive improvements within the team, as well as promoting a culture of continuous improvement among the team members.
- Working with the other Senior Specialists and the team to identify operational risks and contribute to the production of risk reporting.
- Relationship and Stakeholder management: working closely with our clients and custodians to discuss existing and new business. This includes internal Bank customers as well as external clients, including central banks, government and SMF participants.
About you
A strong candidate is likely to be able to demonstrate most of the following essential attributes and experiences. The successful candidate does not need to be a technical authority in all areas from day one; a proactive approach to learning and developing is key. We are looking for potential and a willingness to learn and will provide on the job training.
Essential minimum skills/competencies required for this role include:
- Knowledge of securities settlements.
- A curiosity in the Bank’s back-office operations and how they are supported.
- Strong interpersonal skills to interact confidently with other teams at junior and senior levels, including externally.
- The ability to see how actions/changes impact on other areas.
- Ability to problem solve, including identifying and providing resolutions or recommendations.
- Confidence in the use of Excel and other Microsoft products.
- A strong desire to learn and develop new skills.
- Strong organisational and workload management skills including the ability to identify and switch between tasks and deadlines.
- The ability to work accurately and to tight deadlines.
Desirable Criteria
- Involvement in projects and experience delivering change and improvement initiatives.
- A working knowledge of one or more of the following systems: CREST, EasyWay, Xact, OpenLink, T24, SWIFT Alliance.
Our Approach to Inclusion
The Bank values diversity, equity and inclusion. We play a key role in maintaining monetary and financial stability, and to do that effectively, we believe we need a workforce that reflects the society we serve.
At the Bank of England we want all colleagues to feel valued and respected, so we're working hard to build an inclusive culture which supports people from all backgrounds and communities to be at their best at work. We celebrate all forms of diversity, including (but not limited to) age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religion, sexual orientation and socioeconomic status. We believe that it’s by drawing on different perspectives and experiences that we’ll continue to make the best decisions for the public.
One way we support diversity and inclusion is through our staff-run networks, this is something we strongly endorse and encourage across the division. We actively encourage colleagues to get involved in diversity and inclusion initiatives. All colleagues in our team have specific and actionable objectives related to promoting diversity and inclusion. Our Senior Management team and Heads of division are also actively involved in a variety of D&I initiatives and will regularly seek engagement from all members of staff.
We've also partnered with external organisations to support us in making adjustments for candidates and employees in the recruitment process where they're needed.
Finally, we're proud to be a member of the Disability Confident Scheme. If you wish to apply under this scheme, you should check the box in the ‘Candidate Personal Information’ under the ‘Disability Confident Scheme’ section of the application.
Salary and Benefits Information
The role you are applying for has a pay and development framework in place. This includes a starting salary of £39,360 per annum with the opportunity to progress to £44,280 per annum after approximately 18-24 months, contingent upon acquiring the necessary skills and knowledge to transition to the experienced level. The framework will provide clarity on the skills to be developed and our expectation is that all staff who invest in their development will achieve this pay progression.
In addition, we also offer a comprehensive benefits package as detailed below:
- A non-contributory, career average pension giving you a guaranteed retirement benefit of 1/95th of your annual salary for every year worked. There is the option to increase your pension (to 1/50th) or decrease (to 1/120th) in exchange for salary through our flexible benefits programme each year.
- A discretionary performance award based on a current award pool.
- A 8% benefits allowance with the option to take as salary or purchase a wide range of flexible benefits.
- 26 days’ annual leave with option to buy up to 12 additional days through flexible benefits.
- Private medical insurance and income protection.
National Security Vetting Process
Employment in this role will be subject to the National Security Vetting clearance process (and typically can take between 6 to 12 weeks post offer) and the passing of additional Bank security checks in accordance with the Bank policy. Further information regarding the vetting and security clearance requirements for the role will be provided to the successful applicant, and information about how the Bank processes personal data for these purposes, is set out in the Bank's Privacy Notice
