Payments Officer

About the role

The Payments Officer plays a critical role within the Commercial Operations Transaction Processing Team, ensuring timely and accurate processing of both foreign paper payments and electronic payments, locally and internationally. The role serves as the first point of contact for SWIFT correspondence and handles investigations related to cross‑border transactions.

Key responsibilities

• Process international payments above $2,000 and related advance income tax queries (≈60% of time).
• Prepare monthly compliance returns for non‑compliant clients and submit reports to finance.
• Raise and authorize manual and SFI entries on all currencies for NOSTRO accounts.
• Handle SWIFT messages (MT199, MT202, MT299) and direct charges on NOSTRO accounts.
• Investigate returned cross‑border funds, advise branches and relationship managers, and reconstruct returned funds from various channels.
• Respond to SWIFT queries from correspondent banks and advise compliance on sanctions‑related delays.
• Prepare breakdowns of NOSTRO outstanding items for management action.
• Monitor NOSTRO and suspense accounts, resolve outstanding items, and ensure adherence to FTO and SDV policies.
• Produce team returns, management information, and end‑of‑day reports while complying with regulatory and risk frameworks.

Required profile

• Strong understanding of foreign exchange, VOSTRO/NOSTRO account management, and international payment processing.
• Experience with SWIFT messaging and compliance investigations.
• Ability to work under service‑level agreements and deliver accurate reports.
• Attention to detail and strong analytical skills for reconciling transactions.

Required skills

• SWIFT messaging (MT199, MT202, MT299)
• NOSTRO and VOSTRO account handling
• Advance income tax processing for international payments
• Manual and SFI entry authorization across multiple currencies

What we offer

• Opportunity to work within a leading African banking group.
• Professional development through Absa’s career portal.
• Collaborative team environment with regular training and events.