EVP – International Strategy — Transaction-Banking Franchise

The mandate

An institutionally backed bank has paused further international expansion. Several country proposals promise transaction-banking growth, but none uses the same entry threshold, cost perimeter or exit logic. At the same time, a core-platform renewal will determine which products can travel economically. The investment committee needs one executive to connect market ambition, platform sequence and capital before local momentum becomes commitment.

The EVP – International Strategy will influence approximately €78,200 million in loans and deposits and lead around 1,375 employees and material partners. Scope spans market selection, entry mode, partnerships, product portability, capital allocation, country governance and strategic choices within the platform roadmap. Executive accountability runs directly to the Group Chief Executive or designated executive committee sponsor.

Every market thesis must begin with client flows rather than gross domestic product. The EVP will identify corridors where existing corporate relationships, payments, liquidity and trade activity create a defensible right to win. Revenue must be tested against funding, credit, compliance, localisation, servicing, tax and exit cost. Aspirational cross-sell will not substitute for observable client behaviour.

Entry gates will distinguish learning from scale. A representative office, regulated branch, subsidiary, acquisition and partner-led proposition carry different capital and control consequences. Each phase needs a defined customer cohort, licence path, platform readiness, loss limit and decision date. Sponsors should know in advance which evidence releases more capital and which result triggers withdrawal.

The core renewal is a strategic constraint, not background technology. Product capabilities, data residency, payment rails, language, cut-offs and operational support must be mapped against target markets. Local customisation requires legal or economic proof. The executive will stop countries commissioning divergent solutions that weaken the shared architecture before the new core is stable.

Partnership choices require equal rigour. Local banks, fintechs and processors may accelerate access, yet they can obscure customer ownership, resilience and economics. Contracts should specify data, conduct, service, change, audit and exit rights. Dependency concentration and replacement time will feature in the capital case, not sit in a separate supplier register.

Existing markets also face gates. The EVP will compare actual contribution, client relevance and strategic option value with the cost of continued support. Underperforming operations may be repaired, narrowed, partnered or exited. Sunk investment and executive sponsorship cannot exempt a market from review, while a short-term downturn should not force abandonment of a sound corridor.

Country governance must match delegated risk. Local leaders require clarity on pricing, client acceptance, investment and exceptions, with group functions retaining independent challenge. The operating cadence will surface entry assumptions, platform dependencies, capital consumed and corrective action together. It should eliminate competing presentations that make the same market appear attractive or weak depending on audience.

The international organisation will be shaped around the chosen portfolio. Scarce product, compliance and implementation expertise should be deployed to corridors with gated demand. Successors need exposure across markets and functions rather than advancement within one country. The EVP will make leadership changes without stripping local regulator or client credibility.

Why this seat is open

This unplanned requirement became urgent when the platform renewal exposed the absence of one owner for international market decisions. Interim coverage protects essential approvals, but divided sponsorship cannot continue through the next investment gate. The board expects a qualified shortlist-to-offer process of four to six weeks.

What you will own

• Establish explicit international entry, scale, pause and exit gates.
• Steward strategic allocation across a €78,200 million loan-and-deposit perimeter.
• Align market ambition with portable products and the core renewal sequence.
• Select branch, subsidiary, acquisition or partnership routes using complete economics.
• Govern country decisions, client corridors, regulatory dependencies and capital exposure.
• Lead approximately 1,375 employees and partners with credible succession.
• Reassess current markets using the same evidence required of new proposals.
• Give the board comparable options, downside cases and early-warning thresholds.

The first 12 months

The first 90 days should reconcile current country economics and prospective corridor demand. Meet the 30 stakeholders most consequential to expansion, including clients, country executives, regulators, product leaders, platform owners and capital sponsors. Review partnership exposure, assess leadership and agree investment gates with the board.

Months four to nine should settle the priority market sequence and entry modes. Stop proposals that cannot clear customer, control or platform thresholds, renegotiate material partnerships and decide the future of weak existing footprints. The first value should appear through avoided capital, released cost, contracted demand or accelerated readiness in a chosen corridor.

By year end, capital-efficient entry, partnership choice and timely exit should form a repeatable system. The approved value case must remain within 10%, with forecasts reconciling customers, book, cash and people for three quarters. Critical strategic risks need independent closure evidence, and no severe escalation may remain open beyond 30 days.

What the board will measure

• Risk-adjusted economics and client demand by corridor and entry phase.
• Capital released or protected by gates that changed a market decision.
• Platform divergence avoided through explicit portability standards.
• Partnership concentration, performance and executable exit readiness.
• Keep more than nine in ten pivotal leaders and establish ready-now cover across seven in ten direct roles.
• Forecast accuracy across country, customer, cash and workforce assumptions.

The person

You are an EVP Strategy, International Development Head or Chief Strategy Officer with 22–28 years in banking or a comparable regulated enterprise. You have entered, partnered in and exited markets, and can demonstrate when evidence caused you to reverse an initially attractive expansion thesis.

Your accountable P&L, book, budget or portfolio has been at least €45,350 million, and you have led 950 or more people. You can evidence international choices whose customer, capital and control outcomes held over two reporting periods.

You understand transaction-banking corridors and how platform, licence and operating dependencies affect growth. You can challenge powerful country sponsors, preserve productive local relationships and explain uncertainty without disguising it as precision.

Compensation and terms

Base compensation is €250,000–330,000 plus annual incentive. The permanent Frankfurt role is onsite, supports international relocation and can accommodate notice of up to six months.

Confidentiality

The bank, markets and platform choices will be disclosed only after mutual relevance is established under confidentiality. Published figures and circumstances are blended.