Compliance Operations Associate - São Paulo (Hybrid)
Clara · São Paulo
Clara is the leading platform in Latin America for companies to execute and manage every payment operation. More than 50,000 leading and fast-growing businesses run on our corporate cards, bill pay, financing and B2B payments, and in 2025 the Financial Times named Clara the region’s fastest-growing company. We’re passionate about helping every company we work with become more effective—and, through that, raising the region’s competitiveness. We’re ~400 people, backed by Notable Capital, Coatue, Kaszek, monashees, DST Global, ICONIQ, General Catalyst and Goldman Sachs, among others.
What you'll do
We are looking for a hands-on Compliance Operations Associate based in Brazil to join the Legal & Compliance team and report directly to the Head of Legal & Compliance. The role will support customer onboarding, ongoing reviews and the operational AML/CFT agenda across Brazil, Mexico and Colombia.
You will manage high-volume casework with sound judgment, clear evidence and reliable execution, while helping us improve controls, workflows and automation.
- Review onboarding, remediation and reassessment cases for customers in Brazil, Mexico and Colombia.
- Analyze corporate documents, ownership structures, Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBOs), business models, expected activity and the consistency of customer information.
- Perform KYC/KYB and enhanced due diligence, including PEP, sanctions and adverse-media screening, and document the rationale for each conclusion.
- Execute ongoing transaction monitoring and review AML/CFT alerts from initial assessment through documented closure or escalation.
- Investigate unusual or potentially suspicious activity, request additional information, conduct enhanced reviews and escalate cases in line with internal governance.
- Support the full range of operational AML/CFT activities assigned to Compliance, including periodic and event-driven reviews, customer-risk classification, control execution, remediation and the preparation of internal or regulatory reporting inputs.
- Apply the KYC Manual, AML/CFT policies, risk criteria, checklists, SLAs and escalation rules consistently across cases.
- Maintain complete, accurate and auditable records of evidence, pending items, decisions, approvals and follow-up actions.
- Manage the Compliance pipeline by risk, priority and SLA, providing visibility into volumes, aging, backlogs and material exceptions.
- Escalate higher-risk cases, exceptions and matters requiring a risk decision to the appropriate Compliance leadership or governance forum.
- Work closely with Operations, Fraud, Risk, Credit, Product, Engineering and Data to resolve process gaps and strengthen preventive and detective controls.
- Support AML/CFT risk assessments, quality reviews, control testing, metrics, procedures, playbooks and training materials.
- Identify opportunities for responsible automation and contribute to requirements, testing, implementation and ongoing validation while preserving human review and auditability.
Who you are
We’re looking for someone who meets the minimum requirements to be considered for the role. The preferred qualifications are a bonus, not a requirement.
Must Haves
- 2+ years of experience in Compliance Operations, KYC, KYB, AML/CFT, transaction monitoring or customer onboarding, ideally in a fintech, financial institution or payments company.
- Practical experience reviewing legal entities, UBOs, ownership structures, customer documentation and AML/CFT alerts.
- Working knowledge of customer due diligence, enhanced due diligence, PEP and sanctions screening, adverse media and suspicious-activity escalation.
- Ability to manage high-volume queues, meet SLAs and maintain clear, complete and auditable case records.
- Sound judgment, attention to detail and the ability to apply policies consistently while recognizing when escalation is required.
- Strong ownership, organization and clear communication across multiple teams and countries.
Must Haves
- Experience with AML/CFT requirements or Compliance operations in Brazil, Mexico or Colombia.
- Experience using case-management, screening or transaction-monitoring tools.
- Experience supporting regulatory reporting, audits, control testing or remediation plans.
- Spanish proficiency.
- Experience or strong interest in workflow automation, data analysis or the responsible use of AI in Compliance operations.
Where we work
This is a hybrid role: you'll split your time between the office, customers and home. We don't set a minimum number of office days for most roles — you'll spend time in the office naturally, and most days during your ramp-up or when your leader asks.
Why Clara
- A high talent-density team driven to make an impact in Latin America — low ego, high ownership.
- Competitive salary and stock options (ESOP) from day one.
- An annual learning budget and accelerated development paths.
- English is our working language, with Spanish and Portuguese every day.
How we work
- Clarity — Open and direct communication: we say what we mean and give context where it matters.
- Simplicity — If it can be simpler, it should be.
- Ownership — We own everything we do, end to end. When something needs to happen, we don't wait.
- Pride — We hold ourselves to a high standard, and it shows in what we deliver.
- ABC (Always Be Changing) — We adapt fast, embrace change, and keep learning.
- Inclusivity — Diverse ideas, stories and perspectives build a better Clara.
If you meet the must-haves, apply — the nice-to-haves are a bonus, not a requirement.