Director of Tax

MISSION Neko is redefining what prevention means, from treating illness when it arrives, to sustaining health before it's ever at risk. Our mission: make data-driven, preventative care accessible to more people, before symptoms appear. In a single, non-invasive visit under an hour, proprietary technology and direct clinical care combine to deliver personalised, actionable insights. It's a team that thinks in 10x, not 10%. Every role here plays a part in building a world where prevention is the norm, and where your work genuinely helps people live longer, healthier lives. ROLE PURPOSE Neko Health is scaling internationally at pace – new clinics, new legal entities, new markets, and a more complex cross-border funding and operating structure. This role is being created to give the business dedicated, senior tax leadership for the first time, reporting directly to the CFO. The Director of Tax owns Neko's tax strategy and risk position end-to-end: transfer pricing and corporate tax planning for a fast-growing multinational, tax input into market entry andf cross-border funding decisions, and oversight of tax compliance – including VAT/sales tax – across every jurisdiction Neko operates in. The role is deliberately built around judgement and oversight rather than hands-on compliance production: day-to-day filing and reporting work is expected to be delivered initially through professional firms, with this role setting the strategy, managing those advisers, and owning the outcome. This is a build role. It starts as an individual contributor working in close partnership with the CFO, Director of Financial Control, and the wider Finance team, with an explicit mandate to design and grow a lean, accountable in-house tax function as Neko's scale and complexity justify it. Utilisation of professional tax advisory firms, AI, systems and tools to maximise productivity and minimise cost is expected. The curiosity to learn and develop AI skills is a prerequisite for any role at Neko. WHAT YOU'LL DO IN THE FIRST 6-12 MONTHS Tax strategy, planning and cross-border structuring - Own Neko's global tax strategy, ensuring it supports the commercial and financing plans of an ambitious, fast-growing group while managing risk appropriately. - Lead transfer pricing policy and documentation across the group: design, implementation, benchmarking and defence, in a structure with multiple operating entities and intercompany flows. - Advise the CFO and treasurer on the tax implications of cross-border funding – intercompany loans, equity injections, cash repatriation, withholding tax and thin capitalisation considerations – as part of the wider financing roadmap. - Provide tax input into new market entry: entity structuring, permanent establishment risk, corporate tax registration requirements and the tax consequences of different operating models, working alongside Legal and the market expansion team. - Identify and manage tax risk arising from Neko's growth – new entities, new funding instruments, and evolving group structure – escalating material exposures to the CFO with clear options. - Support M&A activity and licensing agreements from a tax perspective – including due diligence, transaction structuring, and the tax treatment of royalties and IP arrangements – working alongside Legal and external advisers. Tax compliance oversight (all markets) - Own compliance oversight for corporate income tax, VAT/sales tax and other indirect taxes across every market Neko operates in, ensuring filings and payments are accurate and on time everywhere. - Set the operating model for how compliance gets done: select, brief and manage professional tax and accounting firms in each market to prepare and file returns, with this role retaining accountability for the outcome. - Establish a group-wide tax compliance calendar and control framework so filing obligations, deadlines and ownership are visible and tracked centrally, rather than held in individual advisers' heads. - Review and sign off VAT/sales tax treatment on material or novel transactions, and act as the escalation point when local finance teams or advisers flag an uncertain position. - Own tax authority relationships and lead or support tax audits and enquiries across markets, coordinating with local advisers and internal stakeholders. Partnership and team build - Work in close, day-to-day partnership with the Director of Financial Control to ensure tax positions are correctly reflected in the accounting records, statutory accounts and tax provisions – tax strategy and accounting execution need to move together. - Act as the tax voice in FP&A and Treasury discussions where tax has a material bearing – funding structure, dividend and cash repatriation planning, and long-range financial planning. - Manage the group's external tax advisory budget and relationships, ensuring Neko is getting the right mix of quality, coverage and cost from professional firms as the business scales and the mix of internal vs external resource shifts. - Build the business case for, and progressively build out, an in-house tax team as volume and complexity justify it – starting lean, adding capability deliberately, and keeping the function accountable rather than growing headcount for its own sake. WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE - Transfer pricing policy is documented, defensible and consistently applied, with benchmarking refreshed on a regular cycle. - Every market has a clear, on-time compliance track record for corporate tax and VAT/sales tax, with no surprises reaching the CFO or Board. - Cross-border funding and new-market decisions are shaped by tax input early, not bolted on after the fact. - The CFO and Director of Financial Control have full confidence in the group's tax position going into audits, financing processes and Board reporting. - A credible, resourced plan exists for when and how to bring tax capability in-house, tied to actual growth in complexity rather than assumption. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS - Qualified tax professional (e.g. CTA, ACA/CA with a tax specialism, or equivalent) with significant experience in international corporate tax, ideally including in-house time at a scaling multinational and time in a professional services or Big 4 tax practice. - Deep, hands-on transfer pricing experience – policy design, documentation and defence – in a multi-entity group. - Strong track record advising on cross-border financing structures and market entry from a tax perspective, comfortable operating at pace in a business that is still building its processes. - Broad working knowledge of VAT/sales tax and indirect tax compliance across multiple jurisdictions, even where the deep technical execution sits with professional firms. - Experience managing external advisers and firms as the primary delivery mechanism for compliance, with the discipline to hold them to account rather than simply outsourcing risk. - Comfortable as an individual contributor now, with the credibility and inclination to design and lead a small team later – this is a build-it-yourself role before it is a manage-a-team role. - Direct, clear communicator who can translate technical tax positions into commercial terms for the CFO, Executive Leadership Team and Board. WORKING RELATIONSHIPS - Reports directly to the CFO. - Works in close day-to-day partnership with the Director of Financial Control (Accounting) on tax accounting, provisions and statutory reporting. - Engages regularly with Treasury, FP&A and Legal on financing structure, market entry and long-range planning. - Manages relationships with external tax, accounting and advisory firms across all markets. - Visible to the Executive Leadership Team as required and, on material tax matters, the Board.