Head of Finance (Perm or Interim) at Arena… · London

About Arena

Arena is a digital entertainment company building platforms people genuinely love. Since 2021 our portfolio has grown to include MetaWin, WOW Vegas, Hit.com, Rolla, BetZoo Media, Fanbase and Gladiator Games Studio, with teams across London, Gibraltar and Miami.

We work AI first. We aren't held back by legacy systems or conventional thinking, and we expect every function to do more with fewer people by using automation, data and smart tooling. Our platforms run 24/7, so our finance function needs to as well.

The role

We want a Head of Finance who builds a finance function that runs 24/7 for our 24/7 iGaming platforms, with automation doing the heavy lifting and people doing the judgement.

You'll own finance operations, reporting, tax and financial compliance across Arena Entertainment Group, a Gibraltar based iGaming group with entities in several jurisdictions. The difference is how you do it. You'll design a lean, automated finance stack where reconciliations run continuously, payment flows are monitored in real time, and AI tools like Claude handle the repetitive work so the team can focus on decisions.

This role suits a qualified finance leader who is as curious about APIs, integrations and AI agents as they are about intercompany balances, and who measures success by output per head, not team size.

What you'll own

Automation and finance systems

•⁠ ⁠Design and own Arena's finance tech stack, connecting iplicit, banks, PSPs, crypto wallets, payroll and our gaming platforms through APIs and integrations

•⁠ ⁠Use Claude and other AI tools to automate bookkeeping, reconciliations, invoice processing, variance analysis and reporting

•⁠ ⁠Build towards continuous close, so the books are close to real time rather than waiting for month end

•⁠ ⁠Set up automated alerts and dashboards for cash, payment flows and anomalies, so the function can run around the clock without round the clock staffing

•⁠ ⁠Keep a running roadmap of what to automate next, and measure the time and cost it saves

Finance operations and reporting

•⁠ ⁠Own the close, reconciliations and controls for every group entity, with automation doing the routine checks

•⁠ ⁠Deliver management accounts, statutory accounts and group reporting, with live dashboards for the CEO and leadership

•⁠ ⁠Oversee payables, receivables, payroll inputs and supplier payments through automated workflows and approvals

Treasury, banking and payments

•⁠ ⁠Manage bank, PSP and payment provider relationships, including fiat and crypto rails

•⁠ ⁠Monitor payment flows, deposits, withdrawals and safeguarding of player funds 24/7 through automated tooling

•⁠ ⁠Forecast cash across entities and currencies, using data rather than spreadsheets wherever possible

Intercompany and group structure

•⁠ ⁠Automate intercompany recharges, balances and settlements between group entities

•⁠ ⁠Support entity migrations, restructures and dividend and settlement planning

•⁠ ⁠Keep the chart of accounts, nominal codes and accounting policies consistent and machine readable

Tax, compliance and governance

•⁠ ⁠Own corporation tax and other filings across jurisdictions, working with external advisers

•⁠ ⁠Maintain AML/CFT, KYC and financial control policies, and use automation to keep audit evidence organised and always ready

•⁠ ⁠Make sure AI and automation sit inside a clear control framework that auditors and regulators can trust

•⁠ ⁠Handle director appointments, registers, statutory filings and corporate records for all group entities

Leadership

•⁠ ⁠Lead a small, high output team and decide where people add the most value versus where tools should take over

•⁠ ⁠Act as the main finance contact for the board, auditors, regulators and advisers

•⁠ ⁠Champion AI adoption across the wider business, helping other teams automate finance related work

What you'll bring

Essential

•⁠ ⁠Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent)

•⁠ ⁠6+ years in finance, ideally in iGaming, crypto, fintech or other fast moving regulated sectors

•⁠ ⁠A track record of automating finance processes, with real examples of time or headcount saved

•⁠ ⁠Hands on use of AI tools such as Claude or ChatGPT in your day to day finance work

•⁠ ⁠Confidence working with APIs, integrations and automation platforms (for example Zapier, Make, n8n or similar), even if you aren't a developer

•⁠ ⁠Experience running multi entity, multi jurisdiction group finance, including intercompany accounting

•⁠ ⁠Working knowledge of AML/CFT and KYC in regulated gaming

•⁠ ⁠Strong grasp of UK and Gibraltar company and tax filings

•⁠ ⁠Comfortable with cloud accounting (iplicit or similar) and data tools beyond Excel

•⁠ ⁠Clear communicator who can explain finance and automation to non finance colleagues

Desirable

•⁠ ⁠Crypto and digital asset accounting, including wallet reconciliation

•⁠ ⁠PSP and banking relationships in online gaming

•⁠ ⁠Has led a small finance team through a shift to automation