Associate General Counsel

Associate General Counsel

Founded in 2017, NinjaHoldings works to give everyday Americans better access to financial services than traditional institutions typically provide. Through our CreditNinja and NinjaCard brands, we offer digital banking and lending products designed for consumers often overlooked, paired with incentives that support long-term financial improvement. Our Edge brand extends this expertise to other companies, providing underwriting, fraud detection, and analytics services. Headquartered in Chicago with a distributed global workforce, we are a lean, growing organization committed to advancing consumer finance in the US.

The Associate General Counsel will serve as a senior leader within the Legal Department and a trusted advisor to senior management and business leaders across the organization. This role will have broad responsibility for advising on the Company's consumer financial products and services, regulatory matters, litigation, strategic initiatives, commercial relationships, and enterprise legal risk.

The ideal candidate will bring substantial in-house experience in online consumer lending or fintech and a deep understanding of the legal and regulatory framework applicable to consumer financial products. This individual must be comfortable operating with significant independence, exercising sound judgment on complex and high-impact matters, and translating legal requirements into practical solutions that enable the business to achieve its objectives while appropriately managing risk.

The Associate General Counsel will work closely with Legal leadership in establishing legal strategy and priorities, leading significant legal initiatives, and supporting the continued development of the Legal function. The role requires someone who can move seamlessly between strategic counseling and hands-on execution and who is prepared to assume responsibility for significant legal matters across the organization.

This position is a hybrid role based out of our downtown Chicago HQ, in-office 2x/week.

Key Responsibilities:

• Serve as a senior legal advisor to executive leadership and business teams on complex legal, regulatory, product, litigation, and strategic matters
• Provide practical, business-oriented legal advice regarding the development, launch, operation, and evolution of consumer financial products and services, including online installment loans, lines of credit, payment products, and other existing and emerging financial products
• Advise on federal, state, and local laws and regulations applicable to consumer financial services, including TILA/Regulation Z, ECOA/Regulation B, FCRA, EFTA/Regulation E, FDCPA, TCPA, GLBA, UDAAP, state lending and licensing laws, and other applicable consumer protection requirements
• Advise on legal issues arising from bank-fintech partnerships and other strategic relationships, including allocation of responsibilities, product structure, regulatory requirements, oversight, and emerging legal developments affecting bank partnership models
• Partner closely with Product, Technology, Operations, Marketing, Compliance, Risk, Finance, and other business teams throughout the product lifecycle to identify legal requirements and implement practical solutions
• Monitor and assess legislative, regulatory, enforcement, and judicial developments affecting the Company's products and operations; evaluate their potential impact and lead or coordinate implementation of necessary changes
• Lead significant cross-functional legal and regulatory initiatives, including translating legal requirements into operational and technology changes and driving projects through implementation
• Oversee and manage significant litigation and dispute matters, including consumer litigation, arbitrations, class and representative actions, regulatory enforcement matters, and other material disputes. Develop case strategy, manage outside counsel, assess exposure, and provide clear recommendations to Legal and business leadership
• Advise on regulatory examinations, investigations, inquiries, audits, and other interactions with federal and state regulators and governmental authorities, as applicable
• Identify and assess legal and business risks and work collaboratively with stakeholders to develop creative, commercially practical approaches to mitigating those risks while supporting business objectives
• Provide guidance regarding privacy, data use, electronic payments, electronic communications, marketing, consumer disclosures, and other legal issues arising from digital financial products and services
• Collaborate closely with Compliance and other control functions on regulatory change management, risk assessments, vendor oversight, policies and procedures, audits, examinations, and remediation activities
• Provide leadership and guidance to other members of the Legal team, including serving as a resource on complex matters, supporting professional development, and helping establish effective Legal Department processes and priorities
• Manage outside counsel and other external legal resources effectively, including defining scope, directing strategy, evaluating advice, and managing legal spend
• Develop a deep understanding of the Company's business, products, technology, operations, and strategic objectives and use that knowledge to provide proactive rather than solely reactive legal guidance
• Handle other significant legal matters and strategic initiatives as needs evolve

Ideal Candidate Will Have:

• J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school and active membership in good standing in at least one U.S. state bar
• At least 10 years of relevant legal experience, including at least five years of in-house legal experience with an online consumer lender, fintech, bank, or other company offering consumer credit products. Direct experience in online consumer lending is strongly preferred
• Significant experience advising on consumer lending products and the federal and state laws governing consumer financial services, including experience advising product and business teams on the development, implementation, and ongoing operation of regulated financial products
• Experience with regulatory examinations, investigations, enforcement matters, or interactions with federal or state regulators
• Experience with consumer financial services litigation, arbitration, or enforcement matters strongly preferred
• Experience with bank-fintech partnerships or bank-sponsored lending programs strongly preferred
• Demonstrated ability to independently manage complex, high-impact legal matters, exercise sound judgment in circumstances involving legal or business ambiguity, and provide practical, business-oriented advice
• Demonstrated ability to identify emerging legal and regulatory risks and lead cross-functional initiatives from issue identification through implementation
• Ability to communicate complex legal concepts clearly and effectively to executives, business leaders, technical teams, and other non-lawyers, and to build trusted relationships throughout the organization
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, evolving environment, prioritize competing demands, and operate effectively through change and ambiguity
• A collaborative, low-ego approach combined with the confidence, judgment, and leadership skills necessary to independently own significant matters

Benefits & Perks:

• Flexible Paid Time Off
• Health Benefits with generous medical, dental and vision insurance plans
• 401(k) with matching contribution
• Paid Family Leave
• Annual Wellness & WFH Subsidies
• Employee Referral Program
• Remote first culture with convenient downtown office in the heart of the city