Reconciliation Analyst (Bede)

Description

Summary: This Reconciliation Analyst role ensures the financial and operational integrity of Bede's product portfolio through monitoring, reconciling, and validating transactions. Highlights: 1. Revolutionary Fintech Startup focusing on Shariah-compliant Islamic financing 2. Key role in protecting revenue integrity and ensuring process controls 3. Opportunity to work across a diverse and expanding product suite About the Role This role will be part of Zain Bahrain's Subsidiary Fintech Company \- "Bede" Bede, the fintech arm of Zain Bahrain, is a dynamic startup revolutionizing personal finance through Bahrain's first Shariah\-compliant Islamic financing app. Licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain, Bede is committed to creating an inclusive platform that offers practical solutions tailored to real customer needs. With a focus on customer centricity, strategic partnerships, and digital innovation, Bede aims to guide individuals toward growth and success by leveling the playing field for all. Bede The Reconciliation Analyst is responsible for monitoring, reconciling, and validating the end\-to\-end financial and operational integrity of all transaction flows across Bede's product portfolio. The role ensures that every financial event — from product disbursement through to customer account credit, repayment collection, and system reflection in the Loan Management System (LMS) — is processed accurately, completely, and in line with how each product and process was designed to operate. Working within the Finance team and reporting to the Finance Manager, the Reconciliation Analyst uses Tableau dashboards and financial reports — supported by the BI/BA team for data extraction and the Revenue Assurance function for methodology — to identify discrepancies, investigate anomalies independently, and escalate only critical findings requiring management intervention. The role covers Bede's full current product suite — microfinance, prepaid cards, wallet services, and remittances — and will extend to all future products as they are introduced, including insurance, investment, and any other financial services Bede launches. The Reconciliation Analystrole acts as Bede's financial control layer, protecting revenue integrity and ensuring process controls function as designed across all systems and products. What We Need From You **1\. Process Understanding \& Data Access** * Engage with business and IT stakeholders to develop a thorough understanding of every product process end\-to\-end — from how a transaction is initiated in the Bede app through every system touchpoint until it reaches its final state in the relevant system (LMS, card management system, wallet platform, remittance engine, etc.). * For each product and process, document the expected flow, the systems involved, the data generated at each step, and the points where financial entries should be created or updated. * Work with the IT and BI/BA teams to identify what data is available, where it sits, and how it can be accessed — then map this against what is needed to build complete and effective reconciliations and validations. * Where data gaps exist, raise them formally and work with the relevant teams to establish the access, extracts, or system changes needed before reconciliation work can begin. * Maintain up\-to\-date process and data flow documentation for each product line, updating it whenever a system change, new feature, or new product is introduced. * Use this process knowledge as the foundation for designing reconciliation and validation frameworks that are aligned to how the business actually operates — not just how it is assumed to operate. **2\. End\-to\-End Transaction Reconciliation** * Perform daily, weekly, and monthly reconciliations across all Bede product lines to verify that financial transactions are processed accurately from initiation through to completion. * For microfinance: reconcile disbursements from the funding account through to customer account credit, validate commodity purchase and transfer entries, and confirm that repayment instalments are correctly reflected in the LMS. * For prepaid cards: reconcile card load transactions, spending activity, fees, and settlement entries between the card management system and the general ledger. * For wallet services: verify wallet top\-up, transfer, and withdrawal flows to ensure all movements are accounted for correctly across systems. * For remittances: reconcile transfer instructions, partner settlement entries, and customer debit and credit records to confirm end\-to\-end accuracy. * As new products are launched, extend the reconciliation framework to cover their full transaction flows from day one. **3\. Revenue Leakage Detection \& Process Controls** * Monitor transaction flows using Tableau dashboards and financial reports to identify discrepancies, missing entries, timing differences, and potential revenue leakage. * Investigate anomalies independently — trace the source of each discrepancy through system logs, transaction records, and process documentation before escalating. * Maintain a structured log of all identified discrepancies including root cause, financial impact, resolution steps, and closure date. * Escalate critical findings — significant financial exposure, systemic errors, or unresolved discrepancies beyond defined thresholds — to the Finance Manager promptly. * Monitor that internal financial controls are operating as designed and flag any control gaps or failures. **4\. Process Integrity Monitoring** * Validate that all system\-to\-system interfaces and automated processes — disbursements, repayment postings, fee calculations, and settlements — are operating in line with how they were designed and configured. * Cross\-check system\-generated entries against expected outputs to identify processing errors, missed postings, or incorrect amounts. * Liaise with the Technology and Operations teams to investigate and resolve system\-related processing issues that affect financial accuracy. * Participate in change management reviews for any system change, migration, or product update that has financial or transactional impact, ensuring reconciliation controls are validated before go\-live. **5\. Reporting \& KPI Tracking** * Prepare clear, timely reconciliation reports for the Finance Manager covering status, open items, ageing of discrepancies, and resolution progress. * Maintain and update Tableau dashboards used to track reconciliation performance, revenue leakage metrics, and control effectiveness. * Contribute to the development and tracking of KPIs including reconciliation completeness, leakage detected vs. recovered, and open item resolution timelines. * Produce periodic management reports summarising financial control status across all product lines. **6\. Collaboration with BI/BA and Revenue Assurance** * Work closely with the BI/BA team to ensure the correct data is available, extracted accurately, and structured to support effective reconciliation and monitoring. * Coordinate with the Revenue Assurance function to apply the correct methodology, control frameworks, and best practices to Bede's reconciliation processes. * Raise data quality or system reporting issues identified during reconciliation work to the BI/BA team for investigation and resolution. * Contribute to the development of automated reconciliation controls and dashboards as Bede's systems and tooling mature. **7\. Documentation \& Continuous Improvement** * Document all reconciliation procedures, control checks, and investigation steps in a structured and accessible format. * Identify opportunities to improve the efficiency, coverage, and accuracy of the reconciliation process and present proposals to the Finance Manager. * Support internal and external audit activities by providing reconciliation documentation, evidence, and explanations as required. * Stay current with best practices in financial reconciliation, revenue assurance, and process controls relevant to fintech and regulated financial services. Perform any other tasks as requested. Qualifications and Education* Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Islamic Finance, Banking, Management Information Systems, or a relevantated field. * 3\-5 years of experience in reconciliation, financial operations, audit, or a related analytical role. Strong academic performance and analytical project work will be considered in lieu of experience. **Preferred Experience** + Fintech, digital banking, or Islamic finance exposure + Experience using Tableau or a similar BI/dashboard tool + Experience in audit, reconciliation, or financial controls Skills and Knowledge* Understanding of financial transaction flows, accounting entries, and end\-to\-end process logic is an advantage. * Exposure to financial systems, reconciliation processes, or data analysis through internship, coursework, or project work is a strong advantage. * Familiarity with Tableau or similar BI/reporting tools is a plus and will be developed in the role with support from the BI/BA team. * Strong analytical and numerical reasoning skills * High attention to detail and accuracy in financial data work * Ability to understand, interpret, and cross\-reference financial reports and dashboards * Structured approach to documenting findings, discrepancies, and resolutions * Strong written and verbal communication for reporting and escalation * Understanding of end\-to\-end transaction and process flows in a financial services context * Ability to work independently, take initiative, and follow through on open items * Proficiency in Microsoft Excel for data comparison, analysis, and reporting