Director, Fraud Strategy

We’re looking for a Head of Fraud to own and elevate our enterprise fraud strategy. You’ll stay ahead of emerging threats, guide high-performing analytics and investigations teams, manage our fraud loss budget, and build scalable defenses that protect customers without adding friction.

You’ll partner with Engineering, Product, Compliance, and Legal to develop modern fraud technology, strengthen controls, and anticipate new risks—from evolving attack vectors to regulatory changes. You’ll track trends in real time, brief executives and Board-level leaders, and shape the roadmap for how we fight fraud as we grow.

If you thrive in complexity and want to build a best-in-class fraud ecosystem that safeguards both customers and the business, we’d love to meet you.

What you'll do at Avant:

• Own the enterprise fraud strategy across card, loan, and banking products, spanning the full customer lifecycle from account acquisition through ongoing account management and card authorization.

• Define and manage the fraud loss budget, balancing risk, customer experience, and business growth.

• Anticipate and proactively address emerging fraud threats, industry trends, and regulatory changes, continuously evolving Avant’s fraud framework.

• Lead and develop a team of fraud analytics professionals responsible for risk-based authentication strategies, card authorization rules, and other quantitative controls.

• Lead and develop a team of fraud investigators responsible for complex case investigations, account reviews, and high-quality fraud tagging.

• Work closely with Engineering and Product to design, prioritize, and implement fraud technology solutions and controls within Avant’s platforms and tools.

• Partner with Compliance and Legal to ensure fraud policies, procedures, and controls align with regulatory expectations and internal governance.

• Engage with networks, vendors, and data providers to enhance Avant’s fraud detection capabilities and stay ahead of emerging attack vectors.

• Monitor KRIs, dashboards, and reporting to track fraud losses, attack trends, operational performance, and control effectiveness.

• Communicate fraud trends, key risks, and performance to executive leadership and, as needed, to Board-level stakeholders.

Why you're a fit at Avant:

• Bachelor’s degree with 10+ years of experience in fraud risk management within financial services, fintech, or payments, with significant exposure to card, loan, and/or banking products.

• 5+ years of experience leading high-performing fraud analytics and/or fraud operations teams, including people leadership at the director level or above.

• Deep understanding of card fraud, identity fraud, account takeover, and KYC/AML considerations, and their impact on P&L.

• Proven track record managing a fraud loss budget and optimizing the trade-offs between fraud losses, operational expense, and customer experience.

• Strong analytical and quantitative skills; comfortable diving into data, setting metrics, and making decisions based on evidence.

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence at the executive level.

This role is based on our downtown Chicago Office, located in the Merchandise Mart. We highly value collaboration and our hybrid schedule (M, T, Th in-office) enables flexibility to balance work and individual priorities.

Compensation Range:

The base salary range for this job is USD $200,000 - USD $250,000/ Year

Employees new to Avant typically come in below the midpoint of the pay range. The compensation range is based on the level outlined in the job posting, and compensation decisions are dependent on each applicant's experience, skills and abilities. 

[If an outstanding applicant's experience and skill level is above or below the qualifications outlined in the job posting, we reserve the right to make an offer at a different level than the one listed in this job posting, which may have a different compensation range.]

This role is eligible for additional incentives, including an annual bonus. These rewards are allocated based on level, impact and performance in the role.

Our benefits include:

• Choice of great Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance Plan options

• 401(k) match

• Flexible Time Off

• Flexible Work Environment - (i.e. Mon/Tues/Thurs in-person)

• Generous Paid Parental Leave, Adoption Assistance and Post-parental leave ramp-up program 

• Lunch Allowance (Fooda) and In-office Snacks

• Summer Fridays 

• Fun In-Office and Virtual Social Events

• And who doesn’t love the swag

Check out our Avant Blog!

We believe that a diverse set of backgrounds and experiences helps us create the most innovative solutions for our customers. We invite you to apply to our positions even if you do not meet 100% of the qualifications listed in the description. If you’re passionate about our mission and aligned to our values, we hope you’ll come contribute to our awesome culture.

Why Avant is the place for you:

At Avant, we believe our values make a difference:

Authenticity. We show up to work as our whole selves and make sure others can too.

Collaboration. We can only succeed when we do so as a team.

Problem-Solving. The harder the problem, the more satisfying the solution.

Customer. We are all owners of the customer experience.

Initiative. Plan. Adapt. Get Sh!t Done.

We believe that great ideas come from anyone and anywhere, that everyone is an owner who drives change, and that we have more fun when we work together. We're problem solvers who love collaborating with intelligent and highly-motivated people to reshape the face of digital banking. Avant offers terrific perks and benefits, fun social events with employees who actually like hanging out together, and a flexible growth environment where trying your hand at new projects and being the active owner of your career path is encouraged and supported.