About Mercury: Revolutionizing the Banking Industry
Mercury, a pioneering financial technology company, is revolutionizing the banking industry by creating advanced banking products for ambitious businesses. From its humble beginnings as a startup banking platform, Mercury has grown exponentially, managing tens of billions in deposits. Now, it is taking the next giant leap by pursuing a de novo bank charter to become a full-fledged bank.
This transition is a rare, defining moment for Mercury. As the company transitions from a fintech to a bank, there is a pressing need to build an institutional-grade accounting infrastructure from scratch. This challenging endeavor begins with the creation of a new role within the company.
Mercury is a fintech company and is not FDIC-insured. The banking services it provides are through Choice Financial Group and Column N.A., Members FDIC.
The Role: Building the Institutional-Grade Accounting Infrastructure
Reporting directly to the Corporate Controller, the Bank Controller will own the accounting function for Mercury’s banking entity. This is a foundational leadership role that requires the architecting of policies, processes, systems, and a team that will enable Mercury to operate as a fully regulated insured depository institution.
The role requires the individual to work at the intersection of technical accounting, regulatory compliance, and operational build-out. This role is not for someone who is looking to maintain an existing function, but for an individual who has the passion and drive to create a new one and work closely with Engineering and Product.
Key Responsibilities
The Bank Controller will be responsible for the following:
Bank Accounting Infrastructure
- Designing and implementing the Chart of Accounts, general ledger structure, and subledger architecture for the bank entity in accordance with call report and regulatory reporting requirements.
- Establishing bank-specific accounting policies covering investment securities (ASC 320/326), loan accounting, interest income accruals, ALLL/ACL methodology, and fee recognition.
- Building out the bank’s financial close process and reconciliation framework.
Regulatory and Call Report Compliance
- Leading the preparation of FFIEC Call Reports (FFIEC 031/041), FR Y-9C, and other regulatory financial submissions on a quarterly basis.
- Serving as the primary accounting subject matter expert in regulatory examinations (OCC, FDIC, Federal Reserve), responding to examiner requests and managing remediation items.
- Implementing and maintaining the bank’s accounting policy manual in compliance with GAAP, regulatory guidance, and safety and soundness standards.
- Partnering with Treasury on ALM reporting, liquidity coverage ratios, and interest rate risk disclosures.
Financial Reporting and Controls
- Reviewing the bank entity’s standalone GAAP financial statements, including the balance sheet, income statement, and notes.
- Designing and operationalizing the bank’s SOX/SOC controls environment in partnership with internal audit and the holding company controller function.
- Leading the bank’s relationship with external auditors, coordinating the annual audit and interim reviews for the bank entity.
- Establishing and maintaining robust reconciliation controls covering deposits, loans, investments, intercompany balances, and suspense accounts.
Team and Systems Build-Out
- Partnering with Finance Systems and Engineering to implement or configure the bank’s core accounting system, ensuring it supports regulatory reporting and audit requirements.
- Defining data flows between the bank’s core banking system, the Double Entry Ledger, and Mercury’s consolidated reporting infrastructure.
- Collaborating cross-functionally with Legal, Compliance, Risk, Treasury, and Product to ensure the bank’s accounting architecture supports new product launches and regulatory timelines.
Who is the Ideal Candidate?
The ideal candidate should have:
- At least 10+ years of progressive accounting experience with significant time in banking.
- Deep familiarity with bank regulatory accounting, including Call Report preparation and GAAP as applied to insured depository institutions.
- Strong technical accounting skills across investment securities (ASC 320/326), credit losses (CECL/ASC 326), interest income, and intercompany accounting.
- A CPA certification.
Additional preferred qualifications include:
- Prior exposure to OCC, FDIC, or Federal Reserve examinations in an accounting or controllership capacity.
- Hands-on experience building or materially transforming a bank accounting function or experience with a de novo bank charter, bank acquisition, or bank conversion.
- Big Four public accounting background with a financial institutions practice.
The person who will thrive in this role is a builder who thrives on creating infrastructure. They are comfortable operating in ambiguity and can translate complex regulatory requirements into practical accounting policies and workflows. They can communicate fluently with regulators, auditors, engineers, and executives, and are firm believers in controls and data integrity.
Compensation
The total rewards package at Mercury includes a competitive base salary, equity (stock options/RSUs), and benefits. The salary and equity ranges are competitive within the SaaS and fintech industry and are updated regularly using the most reliable compensation survey data for the industry. New hire offers are made based on a candidate’s experience, expertise, geographic location, and internal pay equity relative to peers.
Mercury is committed to diversity & belonging and is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. All individuals seeking employment at Mercury are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected characteristic. Reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process are provided for applicants with disabilities or special needs.
For further information about this role and to apply, please visit the job posting Here.
