Accountant, Finance; Paternity Cover

The Company Christie’s, the world’s largest Art Business, is an incredibly exciting & enriching place to start or continue your career. Whether you work within one of our Specialist Art Departments or in our more Operational focused teams we are all working together with one common goal in mind: to continue the success of this 260 year old company, steeped in history, bringing constant innovation whilst not forgetting our age old values;
Passionate Expertise, Exceptional Client Service, Teamwork, Integrity, Business Judgement & Innovation. Colleagues across all departments are truly passionate about what they do and it is constantly inspiring to work with industry leaders across all segments of the business.

You will support the Christie Manson & Woods Ltd FCRC team on a six-month fixed-term basis, delivering day-to-day accounting operations and month-end close activities for the London entity and other assigned entities. The role will have significant responsibility for fixed asset accounting, balance sheet integrity, intercompany management, audit support and regional office reporting. You will also provide support to the wider team during year-end audit activities, including the Dubai audit process.

The role requires a proactive, organised and detail-oriented accountant who can manage recurring accounting activities, investigate and resolve differences, maintain clear supporting documentation and work effectively with stakeholders across Finance, Treasury, regional offices, auditors and operational teams. The successful candidate will also support process improvements, system enhancements and knowledge sharing across Accounting Operations.

Act as the primary Finance contact for assigned entities, coordinating day-to-day accounting and reporting queries. Take ownership of the fixed asset accounting process, ensuring the asset register is accurate, complete and maintained in accordance with Group accounting policies. Process asset additions, disposals, transfers and depreciation postings and investigate any discrepancies identified. Reconcile fixed asset balances to the general ledger, review capital expenditure and assets under construction, and resolve historical discrepancies.

Prepare, review and maintain bank reconciliations across multiple legal entities, investigating and resolving reconciling items and aged differences. Liaise with Treasury, Accounts Payable and operational teams to clear outstanding bank and cash items, maintaining appropriate support for audit and compliance reviews. Prepare and review assigned balance sheet reconciliations, ensuring that reconciling items are understood, supported and cleared promptly. Post journals and accounting adjustments in JD Edwards, including accruals, prepayments and other month-end entries.

Investigate variances and unusual transactions, review ageing balance sheet items and ensure month-end activities are completed accurately within reporting deadlines. Agree intercompany balances, raise invoices and calculate and process intercompany recharges and management fee allocations. Work with the VAT team on matters relating to the assigned entities VAT return and ensure VAT-related queries are resolved appropriately. Support the wider Finance team during audit cycles, including assisting with audit requests and supporting documentation for the Dubai audit.

Assist with statutory accounts preparation and review for assigned entities. Identify and elevate unusual balances, accounting issues or process/control concerns on a timely basis. Ensure compliance with IFRS, UK GAAP and internal accounting policies across all assigned entities. Support finance automation initiatives, system enhancements, testing and other process improvement projects. Participate in ad-hoc projects and support wider Finance initiatives as required.

Qualified or part-qualified accountant (CIMA, ACCA or ACA), or qualified by experience, with relevant financial accounting or accounting operations experience. Strong practical experience of fixed asset accounting, including maintenance of fixed asset…