Sr Analyst, Payments Risk - Card Brand Compliance

Location: Cleveland, OH or Buffalo NY preferred.

• Hybrid Requirement (if within specific cities): Selected candidate resides in Key Bank footprint are expected to work on-site 3 days per week at the nearest KeyBank office (non-branch location).

• Remote Option: If the selected candidate lives outside of KeyBank’s geographic footprint, the position will be considered fully remote.

JOB BRIEF

The first line Risk team within Commercial Bank is responsible for the governance and tactical execution of owning and managing risk, optimizing risk and return, and enabling sound growth with speed for the business.

The Senior Risk Analyst - Merchant Acquiring will have responsibility for card brand compliance.  This role will be responsible for ensuring KeyBank’s acquiring and merchant compliance with card brand rules by monitoring notifications from the card brands and processors.  The Senior Risk Analyst will also work closely with the Credit Risk team to performs functions in support of the daily onboarding, risk monitoring, and periodic reviews of merchants for the KMS platform in conjunction with the credit and risk services provided by Key’s vendors.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

Primary job functions include:

• Resolving card brand compliance issues including but not limited to:
  • Card brand violations and data integrity issues
  • Card testing notifications and common point of purchase notifications
  • Excessive dispute and fraud notifications
• Serve as internal resource for card brand compliance questions
• Review card brand publications and notices and communicate as needed
• Daily merchant risk reviews and investigations
• Review concurrence requests from vendors for new applications, funds held, releases, tracking and follow-up
• Monitor daily suspended transactions
• Merchant communication and follow-up (includes internal stakeholders) related to investigations and periodic reviews
• Collection placements with external vendors
• Respond to Sales staff inquiries related to pending applications and potential opportunities
• Participate in oversight meetings with internal risk and compliance partners  
• Support internal Third-Party governance and due diligence requirements for KMS Vendors
• Prepare and maintain presentations, deliverables and reporting for governance, risk and vendor forums

Education

• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent experience

Work Experience

• 3+ years of risk experience within payments, preferred merchant acquiring

Skills

• Understanding of merchant risk, fraud indicators, and risk mitigation practices
• Influence and align stakeholders without direct authority, including navigating compliance and regulatory considerations.
• Knowledge of merchant boarding systems and processes
• Knowledge of merchant acquiring risk systems including external tools such as e-commerce monitoring

• Experience in Excel with an ability to manage large data sets, creating summary views using pivots tables, data graphs/visualizations
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to synthesize and clearly present complex topics through effective PowerPoint presentations.
• Demonstrates a collaborative mindset, actively contributing to team success
• Consistently exhibits a strong work ethic, professionalism, and a positive approach to challenges.
• Strong attention to detail, quality, speed and accuracy
• Ability to manage multiple priorities effectively and perform well in fast‑paced, high‑pressure environments.
• Demonstrates a strong commitment to continuous personal growth and professional development
• Experience in Tableau and SQL helpful

Physical Demands

• This role requires standard office-based physical activities such as sitting, standing, and working at a computer for extended periods.

Travel / Driving Requirements

• Minimal to no travel expected