MI Reporting & Financial Accountant

Description

Financial Reporting and MI Accountant

3 Month contract

Based in Canary Wharf

Day rate - Negotiable

The Financial Reporting and MI Accountant supports the Financial Reporting and MI Manager with regards the following accountabilities:

• Financial reporting of valuations and cash flow
• Performance reporting for the Fund
• Regulatory reporting
• Financial reporting, budgeting and cost control
• Statutory accounting and audit
• Provision of Management Information, as required
• Provides support to the Statutory Accounting and Internal Control Manager with regards to the Fund's statutory accounts

The role works closely with the Financial Reporting and MI Analyst who also reports to the Financial Reporting and MI Manager. The post holder provides cover for the Financial Reporting and MI Manager.

Key Tasks

• Valuation, performance and cash flow reporting
  
  • The team are responsible for preparing valuations and performance of the Fund's assets on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.
  • The team are responsible for ensuring that Fund performance calculated from the accounting system (MCH) ties back to the Fund's performance reports (PnA), and ensuring that valuations and performance for asset classes managed by third party investment managers is reconciled back to the managers' monthly reports.
  • The team are responsible for the provision of the Fund's medium-term cash flow reporting and cash flow reforecast.
  • The team are responsible for the provision of this information to a number of stakeholders within the Fund.
  • The team are responsible for demonstrating the performance of relevant controls to ensure the accuracy of the fund accounting records and will be required to work closely with the Statutory Accounting and Internal Control Manager in this regard.
    
    
• Regulatory reporting
  
  • Responsible for regulatory reporting including Fund's quarterly ONS (Office of National Statistics) returns, annual FCA reporting of assets under management and annual PPF levy "stress test" reporting including PV01 and IE01 exposure sensitivity reporting on derivative assets.
    
    
• Financial reporting, budgeting and cost control for the corporate entity
  
  • Oversee the preparation of the annual budget and cost reporting for team costs ensuring all significant costs are accurately accrued and that all material variances between actual spend and latest forecast are investigated and followed up on. Oversee the preparation of a monthly cost reforecast.
  • Ensuring that quarterly recharge invoices (paid by Pension Fund) are paid (via the ops team) and ensuring accounting entries are correctly reflected in the Fund's accounting books.
  • Ensuring the accurate allocation of investment management costs across the individual funds and instructing the State Street accounting team to book these accounting entries correctly in the Fund's accounting records.
  • Responsible for management of the end to end process relating to payment of invoices, managing AP function in this regard to promote controlled process as well as accurate posting of invoices.
    
    
• Statutory accounting and audit for the corporate entity
  
  • Responsible for planning, management and successful conclusion of the corporate entity annual accounts.
    
    
• Fund Audit and statutory accounts
  
  • Supporting the Statutory Accounting and Internal Control Manager in the production of the annual statutory accounts for the Pension Fund in accordance with FRS 102.
  • The team are responsible for the Fund's accounting records being correct with all items shown in the correct place in State Street's MCH accounting system.
    
    
• Supplier management
  
  • The team are lead in relationships with some of its key suppliers, State Street for fund accounting and Fund performance, as well as FTSE, MSCI, S&P and AonHewitt for provision of benchmarks.
    
    
• Client management
  
  • Finance & Operations lead in relationships with regards valuation, performance reporting and managing the successful delivery of the quarterly reporting timetable.
  • The team are responsible for the management of the quarterly client meetings and preparation of the metrics relevant to the FOSA.
    
    
• Development of the Fund's accounting and performance systems
  
  • Ensuring that the team makes best use of State Street's MCH and PnA systems by ensuring that the right reports are available from the systems.
  • Optimising the structure of the data in the accounting system (GL structure, asset hierarchy from individual assets to portfolios and onwards to the Fund).
  • Liaise and work effectively with the Fund's accounting and performance service supplier on the development of the Fund accounting system MCH and the ongoing development of the Fund's performance platform PnA.
  • Support other team members to ensure that data in the MCH accounting system is aligned at all times with Factset.

Strive for continuous improvement in content and process and support ad hoc projects.

Essential Education:

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

Essential experience

• Strong understanding of the investment management industry, including its controls and procedures.
• Able to effectively collaborate with colleagues across and the Fund, as well as with the Fund's key suppliers, advisors and auditors.
• Mastery of technical accounting treatments and their impacts on performance reporting, valuation and cash flow
• Able to challenge current processes and standards and to develop new standardised techniques or approaches to improve the efficiency of the processes

Desirable

• Prior experience working within the fund management industry.
• Previous experience of managing 3rd party stakeholder relationships is desirable.
• CFA qualified or part-qualified