Derivatives MO Associate

A leading global financial institution is seeking a Derivatives Middle Office Associate to join their collaborative team in London.

This is a great opportunity for you to bring your expertise in derivatives and middle office operations to a supportive environment that values flexibility, inclusion, and professional growth. You will play a pivotal role in ensuring the accuracy and completeness of derivative trades across a range of products, including swaps, options, and credit derivatives.

What you'll do:

As a Derivatives Middle Office Associate, you will be at the heart of the derivatives operations function. Your day-to-day activities will involve monitoring exception queues in key reconciliation platforms, ensuring that every trade is accurately reflected from booking through settlement. You will interact regularly with Front Office colleagues to address queries related to trade clearing or affirmation issues while maintaining meticulous records of all actions taken. Your responsibilities will extend to managing cleared trades via central counterparties (CCPs), supporting compression exercises that reduce portfolio risk exposure, and allocating complex trades within advanced trading systems. You will also play an integral role in preparing risk reports that inform senior management decisions. By collaborating with technology partners on system improvements and process simplification initiatives, you will contribute directly to the evolution of the derivatives support function. Success in this role requires attention to detail, effective communication skills, adaptability under tight deadlines, and a proactive approach towards continuous improvement.

• Monitor and resolve exceptions generated in reconciliation platforms such as Murex (OSP) and Optic throughout the day, ensuring seamless trade flow and data integrity.
• Manage system reconciliations diligently by identifying breaks, resolving discrepancies promptly, and escalating unresolved items according to established protocols.
• Oversee affirmation processes on TradeServ and Markitwire platforms to guarantee accurate capture and confirmation of trade data.
• Respond swiftly to Front Office enquiries regarding trade clearing issues, providing dependable support and maintaining open communication channels.
• Administer cleared trade flows by managing clearing status through direct or indirect CCP relationships, aligning positions with internal systems for transparency.
• Support portfolio compressions by processing reductions via tri-optima or through clearing broker relationships, contributing to efficient risk management.
• Allocate ASCOT trades within Front Arena while performing associated tasks to ensure precise representation in Murex systems.
• Execute OTC ISDA Confirmations by handling both incoming confirmations and drafting processes in line with internal and external targets.
• Prepare Key Risk Indicator (KRI) reports and escalate emerging risks appropriately to maintain robust oversight of operational risk metrics.
• Collaborate closely with technology teams to identify required system enhancements, prioritise changes, raise JIRAs, and manage delivery through to completion.

What you bring:

To excel as a Derivatives Middle Office Associate you will bring substantial hands-on experience gained within investment banking or similar financial services environments where you have supported complex derivative products. Your background should include deep familiarity with both cleared and bilateral instruments across interest rate swaps, credit default swaps (CDS), foreign exchange derivatives (NDFs/FX Swaps), total return swaps (TRS), swaptions and convertible bond options. You are comfortable navigating sophisticated reconciliation platforms such as Murex or ION while leveraging affirmation tools like Markitwire for accurate trade capture. Your proven track record includes improving operational controls within middle office settings—streamlining processes for greater efficiency without sacrificing rigour. You thrive when collaborating with cross-functional teams including technology partners on system enhancements or process change initiatives. Your interpersonal skills enable you to communicate clearly with stakeholders at all levels while your commitment to regulatory compliance ensures adherence to industry standards at all times. Above all else your enthusiasm for learning means you embrace new challenges as opportunities for growth.

• Subject matter expertise in derivative products such as cleared and bilateral swaps, swaptions, CDS, CDS index options, ASCOTs, TRS, NDFs, FRAs, FX swaps, convertible bond options.
• Proven experience supporting cleared flows via brokers or direct memberships of central counterparties (CCPs), demonstrating thorough understanding of end-to-end processes.
• Comprehensive knowledge of front-to-back derivative flows encompassing trade booking, life-cycle management, settlements, confirmations, compressions, and valuations.
• Familiarity with reconciliation tools such as Murex Middle/Back Office modules, ION systems, Markitwire platforms, Duco software; experience with trading venues like Bloomberg or Tradeweb is advantageous.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver continuous improvement within middle office functions by enhancing control environments and operational efficiency.
• Experience working within investment banking environments in similar middle office roles focused on derivatives support.
• Ability to identify risks proactively while maintaining high standards of operational control and regulatory compliance.
• Excellent interpersonal skills enabling effective collaboration with colleagues across business lines including technology teams.
• Capacity for flexible working under pressure while consistently meeting deadlines without compromising quality standards.
• Commitment to ongoing professional development supported by participation in structured training programmes.

Robert Walters Operations Limited is an employment business and employment agency and welcomes applications from all candidates