Head of Trading Platform - Crypto Exchange (UAE)

We are a recruitment partner supporting a fintech company in the final stages of launching a regulated cryptocurrency exchange in the UAE (CMA licence).

The company is building a fully compliant trading platform designed to serve both retail and institutional clients under the UAE regulatory framework.

As part of the licensing process, they are assembling a core leadership team and are looking for a Head of Trading Platform - a critical role responsible for the performance, resilience, and regulatory compliance of the exchange’s trading infrastructure.

• Own and build the trading platform function in a regulated crypto exchange.

• Act as a key senior management role accountable to the UAE regulator (CMA).

• Join at an early stage with strong growth ambitions.

• High level of ownership over trading systems, performance, and market integrity.

• Direct impact on platform scalability, stability, and regulatory compliance.

• Define and execute the trading platform strategy aligned with business and regulatory requirements.

• Build and lead the trading platform function, including operations and market controls.

• Collaborate with Compliance, Risk, Operations, and Technology teams.

• Ensure strong governance focused on market fairness, stability, and transparency.

• Oversee the design, scalability, and performance of trading systems (matching engine, OMS, APIs).

• Ensure platform resilience, latency management, and high availability under peak conditions.

• Participate in technology roadmap decisions, including vendor selection and integrations.

• Maintain high standards for system reliability and operational efficiency.

• Ensure fair, orderly, and transparent market operations in line with CMA requirements.

• Implement and oversee market surveillance frameworks to detect:

-market manipulation.

-abusive trading practices.

-suspicious activity

• Define procedures for trading halts, circuit breakers, and trade corrections

• Escalate and report market integrity issues to Compliance and regulators

• Own incident management processes, including outages and root cause analysis.

• Ensure Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery (BCP/DR) frameworks are in place and tested.

• Lead response during critical incidents and ensure proper escalation.

• Conduct regular stress testing and failover exercises.

• Identify and manage risks related to trading platform operations.

• Work with Risk teams on KRIs, thresholds, and risk frameworks.

• Ensure compliance with CMA requirements related to trading systems, audit trails, and change management.

• Support audits, inspections, and regulatory reviews.

• Act as the main point of contact with the CMA on trading platform matters.

• Ensure timely reporting of incidents, system changes, and market disruptions.

• Maintain accurate records of orders, executions, and system activity.

• Ensure full transparency and auditability of platform operations.

• 10+ years of experience in trading platforms, exchanges, or fintech.

• 5+ years in a senior leadership role managing trading systems or infrastructure.

• Strong experience in regulated financial environments (CMA or equivalent).

• Deep understanding of trading systems, market structure, and execution models.

• Experience with market surveillance and market abuse prevention.

• Proven ability to manage high-impact incidents and operate under pressure.

• Strong leadership and stakeholder management skills.

• Fluent English (Arabic is a plus).

• Experience with regulated exchanges or trading venues.

• Background in crypto markets or digital asset trading.

• Experience with market surveillance tools and technologies.

• Involvement in regulatory inspections or incident reporting.

📍 Abu Dhabi, UAE - on-site role.

🏠 UAE residency required (or willingness to relocate).

💰 Competitive compensation, discussed individually.