Contact SMF Capital
Recruiting for a Senior Manager Function, covering a sudden vacancy, or reviewing how your compliance and governance roles are structured? Tell us about the role and a member of our senior search team will come back to you within one working day to arrange a confidential conversation.
Email recruitment@smfcapital.co.uk · Looking for a role? Register as a candidate
Tell us about the role
A few lines is enough: the type of firm, the function you need to fill and your timetable. We will come back to you to arrange a first call.
Your details are used only to respond to your enquiry.
Speak to us directly
- Phone
- 0203 745 0239
The quickest route for urgent vacancies. - recruitment@smfcapital.co.uk
For briefs, job descriptions and anything you’d like to send in writing. - London office
- 167-169 Great Portland Street
London W1W 5PF - West Midlands office
- Watling Court, Orbital Plaza
Watling St, Cannock WS11 0EL - Meetings
- At either office, at your premises or by video call. We work with firms across the UK; see London, Birmingham and our other locations.
From First Call to Approved Appointment
Every search is agreed in writing before any activity begins, and the regulator’s fit and proper test is built into it from the start. Our guide to building an SMF team explains each stage in more detail.
- 01Initial conversationWe talk through the role, the designation it needs, why it is open and your timetable, including whether you need interim cover while the search runs.
- 02Brief and proposalWe set out the role specification, candidate profile, search approach, timetable and fees. Nothing proceeds until you have agreed it.
- 03Search and shortlistOur senior search team approaches candidates in confidence and tests experience, regulatory history and time commitment before you see a shortlist.
- 04Interviews and approvalWe coordinate interviews, references and the offer, and support the Form A and temporary cover through to approval.
The Firms We Help
Most enquiries come from chief executives, chairs, compliance leads and HR directors in one of these situations.
A first or replacement SMF16 or SMF17
Compliance officers and MLROs, combined or separate, full-time, part-time or fractional.
→ Compliance officer and MLRO recruitmentInsurance brokers and MGAs
Brokers going directly authorised, leaving a network or replacing a compliance officer.
→ Compliance officers for brokersFirms seeking authorisation
The Senior Managers the FCA expects to see named in an application, appointed in time.
→ SMF authorisation supportBoards and committees
Chairs, committee chairs and independent non-executives for regulated boards.
→ Chair and committee chair recruitmentUrgent vacancies
A Senior Manager has left at short notice and the firm needs cover quickly.
→ Urgent SMF replacementExecutive Senior Managers
Chief executives, finance directors, chief risk officers and chief operating officers.
→ SMF recruitment servicesUrgent Vacancies
If a compliance officer, MLRO or other Senior Manager has just resigned or left, call rather than email. We can usually propose interim candidates within days, and help you with the regulatory steps that follow. Our guides to urgent SMF replacement, what to do when your MLRO resigns and the 12-week rule set out the first steps.
Before You Call
Useful reading for a first conversation. Every SMF search is overseen by Adrian Lawrence FCA.
Services
How we work with firms.
→ SMF recruitment services→ Retained executive searchAbout SMF Capital →
Control Functions
Our most requested roles.
→ Compliance officer (SMF16)→ MLRO (SMF17)What a combined role costs →
Planning
Getting the role right.
→ Governance and SMF structure review→ Outsourced compliance officerHow long it takes →
Smaller Firms
Part-time and fractional options.
→ Part-time compliance officer→ Fractional MLROFractional and interim cover →
Every SMF search is overseen by Adrian Lawrence FCA
What to Include in Your Enquiry
You do not need a finished role specification. These details help us give useful advice from the first conversation:
- the type of firm, its permissions and whether it is a Limited Scope, Core or Enhanced firm under the SMCR, if you know
- the role you have in mind and the Senior Manager Function it is likely to carry
- why the role is open: a new appointment, a replacement, growth or an authorisation application
- whether you need someone full-time, part-time, fractional or on an interim basis
- your timetable, including any regulatory deadline or date the current holder leaves.
If some of this is still unclear, that is normal. Working out which function a role needs is often the most useful part of the first call. Our guides to SMF designations and which SMFs apply at which firm tier are a good place to start.
For candidates
Register as a candidate →Send your CV once and we will match it against current and future searches. See current roles →Compliance, MLRO, risk and board roles we are recruiting for. Salary guide →Typical salaries and day rates for Senior Manager roles. Approval interviews →How to prepare for an FCA or PRA interview.Frequently Asked Questions
Who will I speak to?
A member of our senior search team, who works on Senior Manager searches every day. Every SMF Capital search is overseen by our founder, Adrian Lawrence FCA.
How quickly will you respond?
Within one working day. For urgent vacancies, calling 0203 745 0239 is the fastest route.
Is the first conversation free?
Yes. The first call is free and carries no obligation. Fees are agreed in writing before any search begins.
Is my enquiry confidential?
Yes. Many enquiries involve changes that have not been announced. We treat every enquiry and search as confidential, and we never approach candidates about a role without your agreement on how the firm is described.
Can we meet in person?
Yes. We regularly hold meetings at our London office on Great Portland Street, and can meet at our West Midlands office in Cannock, at your premises or by video call.
How long does an SMF hire take?
It depends on the role and the market, and the regulator’s own assessment can take up to three months once a complete application is submitted. We agree a realistic timetable with you before we start, and our guide to how long an SMF appointment takes sets out each stage.
Do you only recruit Senior Managers?
Senior Manager and compliance appointments are our specialism. SMF Capital is one of the five firms of FD Capital Group, so if your role is not a Senior Manager appointment we will refer you: FD Capital for finance directors and CFOs, Exec Capital for C-suite roles without a regulatory element, NED Capital for non-executive directors and Accountancy Capital for qualified finance professionals below director level.
Why Firms Choose SMF Capital
SMF Capital is dedicated to Senior Manager and compliance appointments at FCA and PRA-regulated firms: compliance officers, MLROs, chief risk officers, chairs and executive Senior Managers. Searches are run by our senior search team under founder Adrian Lawrence FCA, a Chartered Accountant and former listed-company Finance Director, and that grounding in finance and regulation shapes how we assess candidates for regulated roles.
We work in line with the UK government’s Standard Voluntary Code of Conduct for Executive Search Firms. To find out more, meet our team, read our case studies or see our FAQ.
About Our Founder
Adrian Lawrence FCA is the founder of SMF Capital. He is a Chartered Accountant and Fellow of the ICAEW, holds a practising certificate in his own name, and is a former listed-company Finance Director with a BSc from Queen Mary College, University of London. He founded FD Capital in 2018 and has since built FD Capital Group, a network of five specialist recruitment firms. He oversees every SMF Capital search, working with an experienced senior team. View Adrian’s ICAEW profile.