Director, Commercial Partnerships

2 weeks ago

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa Carry1st Full time R200 000 - R250 000 per year

Carry1st is Africa's leading games publisher and monetization platform. Our Platform business unit helps top global companies grow their player base and revenues across Africa and the Middle East; while our Studio unit acquires, develops, and publishes first-party mobile games for global audiences. 

Our partners include Activision, EA, Riot Games, and NetEase and we're backed by top investors like a16z, Bitkraft, Google, Konvoy, Sony, Riot Games, and Nas. We're scaling awesome content by solving hard problems at the intersection of content, publishing, and digital commerce.

The Director, Commercial Partnerships, will lead partner acquisition and commercial growth for our B2B products — Pay1st Gateway and Carry1st Shop.

You'll be the architect of Carry1st's partner ecosystem: building relationships with top global digital companies, structuring transformative commercial deals, and shaping how the world's biggest content companies localize and monetize in emerging markets.

This is a hands-on leadership role reporting directly to the Co-Founder, COO, with visibility to the CEO, Board, and executive team. You'll manage an existing BD Manager and will be able to expand your team as you scale the business.

You will ...

  • Build and execute Carry1st's B2B go-to-market strategy for Pay1st Gateway and Carry1st Shop integrations
  • Source, negotiate, and close strategic partnerships with leading game publishers, digital content companies, and payment platforms — from first call through commercial close
  • Own commercial modeling and pricing structures, working closely with Finance and Product to ensure profitable, scalable terms
  • Collaborate with Marketing and Product to turn integrations into market-defining case studies and repeatable playbooks
  • Establish a high-performing BD motion — define ICPs, refine outreach, and create deal review cadences that enable predictable revenue growth
  • Represent Carry1st externally at industry events, conferences, and partner meetings to strengthen our position as the gateway to African and Middle Eastern consumers

What makes you a great candidate?

  • 8+ years of experience in business development, commercial partnerships, or sales at a leading payments, fintech, or platform company (e.g., Adyen, Stripe, dLocal, Paystack, , PPRO, Appsflyer, Unity, IronSource)
  • Proven track record of closing complex enterprise integrations and structuring commercial deals worth $5 M+ in annualized volume
  • Fluency in payments, FX, and platform economics; comfort with APIs and SDK-based products
  • Strategic storyteller — able to translate technical capabilities into compelling commercial narratives
  • Operates independently, thrives in ambiguity, and acts like an owner
  • Familiarity with Africa / MENA digital ecosystems is a plus (not required)

What will it be like to work at Carry1st?

Carry1st is a fast-paced and dynamic place to work. Our team is diverse and global as we operate fully-remotely across 25+ countries. At Carry1st, you will have the opportunity to…

  • Impact: Build the rails that connect the world's top digital platforms to Africa's next 1 billion consumers
  • Ownership: Report directly to the COO and shape Carry1st's commercial strategy end-to-end
  • Growth: Freedom to recruit your own team as you scale the business
  • Upside: Competitive compensation, performance-based variable bonus (≈ 60/40 split), and generous equity participation.
  • Grow with a VC-backed startup at the intersection of gaming, fintech and Digital Commerce
  • Work from anywhere in the world with international teammates

Some additional perks…

  • Co-working excursions: Travel to meet your colleagues in cities around the world
  • Awesome equipment: Get everything you need to work effectively 
  • Remote working allowance: Put an additional $600 / year to optimise your WFH experience
  • Learning and development: Attend courses, conferences and training events
  • Social events: Participate in regular company events to relax and connect with teammates

We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds, not just because it's the right thing to do, but because it makes our company stronger. Join us

Learn more about Carry1st…

  • Andreessen Horowitz shared why they invested in Carry1st
  • NYSE Trade Talks interviewed Cordel about Carry1st's success in the African gaming market
  • Naavik hosted Cordel on a podcast to discuss Africa's gaming landscape

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