Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. Phoenix is the Autonomous Commerce Platform for DTC Founders, unifying storefronts, checkout, payments, and operations with AI agents. The Payments Analyst – High-Risk Underwriting will evaluate and underwrite merchant and ISV applications, assess financial, operational, regulatory, fraud, and reputational risks, and develop responsible approval and risk-mitigation strategies. The role also involves managing merchant and partner relationships, supporting payment performance and growth, and collaborating cross-functionally on onboarding and underwriting processes.
Responsibilities
- Review and make underwriting decisions on merchant and ISV applications prior to submission to processors, acquiring banks, and sponsor banks
- Evaluate:
- Business models and transaction flows
- Financial and bank statements
- Processing history
- Credit data
- Chargeback exposure
- Fraud risk
- Overall financial and operational stability
- Underwrite merchants across high-risk ecommerce, embedded payments, SaaS, subscription, and digital commerce business models
- Evaluate merchant compliance with:
- Visa and Mastercard requirements
- Card network rules
- KYC/AML requirements
- PCI DSS
- Processor and acquiring bank requirements
- Internal risk policies
- Identify emerging risks and recommend appropriate controls while maintaining accurate, audit-ready underwriting documentation
- Develop and recommend strategies that appropriately balance merchant growth with risk
- Reserves and rolling holds
- Processing limits
- Transaction monitoring
- Fraud controls
- Additional documentation requirements
- Other operational safeguards
- Prepare clear underwriting summaries, risk assessments, and approval recommendations for processors, sponsor banks, and acquiring partners
- Build trusted relationships with merchants, processors, acquiring banks, sponsor banks, ISVs, and compliance partners
- Develop a strong understanding of each merchant's:
- Business model
- Payment flows
- Growth objectives
- Processing challenges
- Fraud and chargeback exposure
- Operational risk
- Serve as a strategic partner throughout the underwriting and merchant lifecycle
- Help identify payment strategies that support merchant growth while maintaining responsible risk management
- Provide recommendations around:
- Authorization performance
- Fraud prevention
- Chargeback reduction
- Payment processing efficiency
- Processing costs
- Overall payment performance
- Identify opportunities to strengthen and expand existing merchant relationships where appropriate
- Partner closely with:
- Sales
- Partnerships
- Client Success
- Product
- Operations
- Leadership
- Implementation teams
- Help structure approvable merchant submissions, resolve underwriting challenges, support seamless onboarding, and communicate merchant feedback that can improve Phoenix's products and processes
Skills
- 2+ years of underwriting experience within high-risk payments, merchant acquiring, fintech, or merchant services
- 3+ years of experience across payments, fintech, merchant acquiring, risk management, or financial services
- Strong understanding of high-risk ecommerce and merchant risk
- Experience underwriting merchants for ISVs, Payment Facilitators (PayFacs), payment gateways, embedded payment platforms, processors, or similar payments environments
- Experience evaluating financial statements, bank statements, processing history, fraud exposure, and chargeback trends
- Knowledge of KYC/AML requirements and acquiring bank requirements
- Familiarity with Visa, Mastercard, NACHA, and PCI DSS requirements
- Ability to make independent, data-driven underwriting decisions while balancing risk with business growth
- Strong analytical, written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills
- Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, high-growth environment
- Experience underwriting high-risk DTC, subscription, digital goods, or ecommerce merchants
- Experience working directly with ISOs, PayFacs, processors, acquiring banks, or sponsor banks
- Experience establishing reserves, rolling holds, processing limits, or other merchant risk controls
- Experience with merchant portfolio monitoring and ongoing risk reviews
- Experience improving or building underwriting processes rather than solely operating within established procedures
- Experience working in fast-paced startup or high-growth payments environments
- Strong merchant-facing or partner relationship experience
Company Overview