Policy, Regulatory & Strategic Initiatives, Lead

Who We Are:

Every transaction matters. Every Canadian matters. At Interac, we protect both — driving trust, security, and inclusion, so our digital economy thrives.

Founded in 1984, Interac connects Canadians through secure digital payments, advanced identity verification and industry-leading fraud protection. Connecting banks, businesses, and individuals, Interac enables millions to send, receive, and manage money safely and effortlessly every day — across both digital and physical environments.

As the backbone of Canada’s financial ecosystem, Interac facilitates over 20 million transactions daily, supported by trusted partnerships with government and financial institutions. Consistently ranked as Canada’s most reputable financial technology brand, Interac is deeply embedded in the daily lives of Canadians.

Who You Will Work With:

Reporting to the Head of Government Relations & External Affairs, the Lead is the senior policy and regulatory role within Interac's Government Relations & External Affairs function, working on the issues shaping Canada's payments and digital economy. This is a newly created position, reflecting the growing strategic importance of policy and regulatory issues to Interac. The role works cross-functionally with teams across the enterprise, serving as an internal subject-matter expert on government and political dynamics, policy context and public sector strategy, and provides strategic counsel and leads execution to align government relations activities with enterprise priorities — including, where relevant, revenue and commercial objectives.

What You Will Do:

Policy, Regulatory & Advocacy Leadership Lead major policy and regulatory files from strategy through drafting, internal alignment, review and submission, including priority regulatory consultations and flagship policy publications affecting payments, financial services and the digital economy.

Monitor, analyze and interpret policy, legislative and regulatory developments; produce briefings that translate developments into business implications and recommended responses for senior leadership.

Lead proactive and reactive advocacy planning ahead of major legislative, regulatory and budget milestones with material implications for Interac's mandate, products and market position.

Develop senior-level materials, including briefing notes, consultation submissions, policy papers, decision memos and external-facing thought leadership.

External Representation & Engagement Represent Interac on industry and standards committees and in standing engagements with associations and ecosystem counterparts.

Engage with government officials and public-sector stakeholders on priority files and maintain broader relationships with industry counterparts and external advisors.

Shape government and stakeholder understanding of Interac's role, capabilities and policy positions on priority issues.

Surface emerging stakeholder, policy and reputational risks and recommend response strategies.

Enterprise Strategic Execution Lead integrated, cross-functional projects with clear accountabilities, senior leadership alignment, issue escalation and high-quality delivery.

Direct external advisory support on priority files, including scope, deliverables and budget oversight.

Support public-sector applications of Interac products and services where they intersect with government priorities.

Provide strategic advice and decision support to senior leaders on politically sensitive, reputationally significant, or time-critical issues.

Governance & Operating Discipline Support advocacy governance and lobbying compliance across applicable jurisdictions, in coordination with legal and compliance partners.

Contribute to annual and quarterly team planning, file prioritization and the function's operating discipline, including knowledge management and issue tracking.

Mentorship & Coaching Provide guidance to team members on policy analysis, advocacy practice and file execution.

Review work products and provide feedback to ensure quality and alignment with objectives.

What You Bring:

Education:

Bachelor's degree in public policy, political science, law, or a related field.…