Head of Compliance
The Role
The Head of Legal & Compliance will be the senior in-house legal and regulatory authority for a commodities trading house, owning the full legal, compliance, AML and sanctions agenda for the Swiss entity and its cross-border trading flows. The role acts as a trusted advisor to the MD, the Board and Group leadership on commercial contracts, regulatory matters, group financing structures and counterparty risk.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead all legal matters, including drafting and negotiating physical commodity sale and purchase agreements, LME-related contracts, offtake, agency, NDAs and intercompany agreements.
- Advise on Swiss corporate law, board governance and statutory matters with the Handelsregisteramt Zug.
- Manage external counsel across multiple jurisdictions and oversee disputes and arbitration (LCIA, ICC, Swiss Rules).
- Own and enhance the compliance framework across AML/CFT (GwG), sanctions (SECO, EU, OFAC, OFSI), anti-bribery & corruption, competition law and export controls.
- Oversee KYC and counterparty due diligence for trading partners, brokers and intercompany flows, particularly across high-risk jurisdictions.
- Monitor LME rules and responsible sourcing obligations (OECD Due Diligence Guidance, EU Conflict Minerals, CSDDD, CBAM).
- Deliver compliance and ethics training, lead internal investigations and report regularly to the Board on legal and compliance risk.
Candidate Profile
- 8+ years' experience in legal and compliance, ideally in commodities trading.
- Strong knowledge of physical commodity trading contracts, Incoterms, trade finance instruments and LME mechanics.
- Proven expertise in AML, sanctions, ABC and export controls across multi-jurisdictional flows.
- Experience operating in or with emerging markets.
- Fluent English; French is advantagous.
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