FinTech & Financial Services sales recruitment in Leeds
Retained search for senior FinTech and financial services commercial leaders. Engagements typically include a regulator-friendly profile design step before approach. On the ground in Leeds and across the wider Yorkshire fintech & financial services cluster.
Leeds combines a deep professional services base (the second-largest legal and financial centre in the UK) with one of the fastest-growing technology clusters in the North. The city centre and the South Bank regeneration zone host a mix of FinTech, HealthTech, GovTech and B2B SaaS scale-ups, supported by a heavy investor presence around Wellington Place and Park Square. Channel 4's national headquarters and Sky's growing tech presence have lifted the bar for senior commercial talent the city expects to attract and pay for.
Leeds is the second-largest financial centre in the UK by employment and the unambiguous FinTech capital of the North. First Direct, Lowell, TransUnion, the Yorkshire Building Society and a deep wider mutual and challenger-bank base mean Leeds offers more genuinely senior FinTech commercial supply than any UK city outside London.
First Direct (HSBC)
FinTech / Banking
Long-standing Leeds FinTech anchor with deep digital and commercial talent.
Lowell
Credit management
Leeds-headquartered FinTech-adjacent business with a substantial commercial team.
Yorkshire Building Society (Leeds offices)
Mutual finance
Major Leeds-area commercial employer.
TransUnion (Leeds)
Credit data / FinTech
Leeds-based commercial team for the global credit-data business.
Sopra Banking Software
Banking software
Leeds presence for the global banking-software vendor.
FinTech and financial services commercial supply is one of the deepest in the Northern professional market. Leeds in particular has a large pool of mid-career commercial leaders with regulated-sector experience. Senior leadership talent is heavily passive and embedded in long equity packages, especially in PE and VC-backed FinTech.
FinTech commercial salaries in the North run close to or above mainstream SaaS for equivalent seats. A FinTech CCO in Leeds or Manchester typically earns £130k-£190k base with OTE of £200k-£320k plus equity. Insurance commercial salaries in York and Leeds run slightly below FinTech for equivalent seniority.
Leeds salary nuance
Leeds FinTech commercial salaries are the strongest in the North and run within 5-10% of London for senior seats. A Leeds FinTech CCO typically earns £140k-£200k base with OTE £210k-£330k plus equity.
Leeds City Station gives strong rail links to York (25 min), Manchester (60 min), Sheffield (45 min) and Harrogate (30 min), making it a viable HQ for a regional team.
How we work
01
We start with a structured kick-off that captures the commercial objective, not just the title. Reporting line, comp envelope, the deal sizes the person will sell, the buyers they will sell to, and the behaviours that will succeed in your environment.
02
We map where the right people actually sit, across direct competitors, adjacent industries and proven environments in your region. This becomes the long-list of candidates we approach, not just whoever is on the job boards this week.
03
Candidates are approached with a clear commercial narrative, not a job advert. We communicate the opportunity, the leadership environment, the expectations and the growth path, so only genuinely relevant people move forward.
04
Two structured commercial screens before a candidate ever reaches you. Track record validation, deal-stage probing, motivation, and a credibility check on the numbers they have actually delivered.
05
You receive a considered shortlist, not a CV flood. Each candidate is presented with strengths, potential risks and a fit assessment. We then support the process through to offer, acceptance and the first 90 days.
FAQs
Yes. Our partners have placed senior commercial leaders into FCA-regulated FinTech, payments, lending and wealth-tech businesses. Regulator-friendly hiring profiles are a standard part of our brief design.
Leeds is the largest single FinTech commercial market in the North, followed by Manchester. York is the natural home for senior insurance commercial talent.
A typical Sales Director search in Leeds runs 8 to 10 weeks from kick-off to offer accepted. Senior commercial talent in the Leeds market is largely passive and the best people are usually approached, not advertised to.
A Sales Director in Leeds typically earns £120k-£170k base with on-target earnings of £200k-£280k, depending on sector and deal size. FinTech and SaaS sit at the top of that range.
Email Rachel Lunn and the team. We will reply within one working day with a Leeds-specific fintech & financial services market read for the role you have in mind.
Email Rachel Lunn/sales-recruitment/leeds/fintech
Sales recruitment, GTM recruitment and revenue advisory for SMEs UK-wide. We reply within one working day.
Email Rachel Lunn