Data Protection Officer

Bitvavo, a digital assets trading platform and market leader in the Netherlands, is seeking a senior, hands-on Data Protection Officer to drive and continuously develop its data protection program. Reporting to the Head of Legal, the role works closely with multiple business units and products to keep Bitvavo compliant with data protection and privacy laws including the GDPR, as part of the legal team based in Amsterdam. The role provides independent oversight of compliance, engages with regulators and stakeholders at every level including the Management Board, and has real scope to shape the data strategy.

Responsibilities

Advise and guide Bitvavo on the policies and standards needed to meet its data protection obligations; Engage with data protection authorities, including regular briefings, and maintain accurate records demonstrating GDPR compliance; Organise training and awareness activities on data protection and privacy across the company; Build a culture that embeds respect for data protection and privacy, acting as the champion for compliance; Communicate the privacy implications of new technology and proof of concepts clearly, to both technical and non-technical audiences; Assist in addressing mandatory notification and other legal issues in the event of a data loss or breach; Challenge the status quo with creative, pragmatic solutions to difficult data protection problems, including on innovative ecommerce and AI projects; Devise privacy preserving methods for using large structured, unstructured, transactional and real time data sets, and turn data protection law, statistics and business judgement into actionable recommendations; Drive and continuously develop Bitvavo's data protection program, ensuring compliance with data protection and privacy laws including the GDPR; Own the business processes and policies covering data access, classification, quality and life cycle management

Requirements

Qualified lawyer holding a law degree; At least 7 years of experience in data protection, including a minimum of 5 years gained within the EU; Proven record of engaging directly with data protection authorities on compliance matters; Experience handling data protection and privacy issues for a regulated entity, ideally in tech or ecommerce; Strong knowledge of and interest in emerging technologies and their social and economic impact, including customer facing ecommerce; Proven ability to analyze complex legal, regulatory and business issues and give sound advice under time pressure; Experience managing multiple compliance projects, frameworks or teams, including internal and external resources and delivering training; Knowledge of IT security and data analysis methodologies, with experience working alongside IT Security teams in a data driven business; A strategic, open minded and user centered thinker who communicates proactively, connects the dots across industry and regulatory trends, and stays focused on execution

Nice to have

Experience within the Dutch market of 5 years or more is a strong preference