Job Description

We are champions of rail, inspired to build a greener, more sustainable future of travel. Trainline enables millions of travellers to find and book the best value tickets across carriers, fares, and journey options through our highly rated mobile app, website, and B2B partner channels.

Great journeys start with Trainline

Now Europe’s number 1 downloaded rail app, with over 125 million monthly visits and £5.3 billion in annual ticket sales, we collaborate with 270+ rail and coach companies in over 40 countries. We want to create a world where travel is as simple, seamless, and affordable as it should be.

Today, we're a FTSE 250 company driven by our incredible team of over 1,000 Trainliners from 50+ nationalities, based across London, Paris, Barcelona, Milan, Edinburgh, Madrid, and Brussels. With our focus on growth in the UK and Europe, now is the perfect time to join us on this high-speed journey.

Job Description

Introducing Finance at Trainline

Our Finance team lies at the heart of our growth story, driving strategic decision-making and ensuring financial excellence as we scale. Led by our CFO, Pete Wood - an outstanding finance leader with experience at eBay and Deloitte - the team goes beyond the numbers, delivering insight and value at every level of the business. We pride ourselves on being true commercial partners, helping to shape the future of Trainline with a blend of technical expertise, innovation, and big-picture thinking. As we continue to expand, we’re looking for a dynamic leader to join us and make a real impact…and that’s where you come in!

About the role

As Group Finance Director, you’ll own and shape financial control while contributing to our broader business strategy across the UK, Europe and beyond. Leading a team of c.45 in London, Paris and Edinburgh, you’ll oversee balance sheet, P&L, tax, treasury and internal audit while working closely with cross-functional teams and FP&A. With regular exposure to the Board, you’ll be a key voice in driving financial strategy and decision-making.

As a recently listed business, we’re on a journey of continuous improvement, and you’ll have the opportunity to enhance our processes, drive efficiency, and support our ambitious growth agenda. Your fresh perspectives and leadership will help shape the evolution of our finance function as we scale.

As a key member of the Finance leadership team reporting directly to Pete, your remit will extend beyond finance into broader business strategy - including risk management, equity market updates, and both organic and inorganic growth opportunities. Your ability to challenge thinking from both a commercial and technical perspective will be highly valued by the Exec team and the wider business.

Other key responsibilities include:

• Owning financial reporting - you’ll be the ultimate point of responsibility for all internal and external financial reporting, including the successful delivery of year-end and half-year PLC reporting.
• Leading and inspiring the Financial Control team - you’ll foster a high-performing, collaborative, and rewarding culture while driving continuous improvement in processes and outcomes.
• Providing strategic financial insight - you’ll bring a finance lens to key senior forums, such as Security & Privacy, Platform - Tech, and Payments, helping shape the future trajectory of our business with commercial and strategic input.
• Partnering with senior leadership - you’ll work closely with Directors and Executives, contributing to corporate strategy development and execution while providing both support and commercial and technical challenge.
• Overseeing key Finance functions - you’ll lead Tax, Treasury, and Internal Audit, ensuring effective management of areas such as Group tax strategy, FX impact on balance sheet and cashflows, and strengthening risk assurance across the business.
• Supporting commercial decisions - as a key point of contact for Commercial Finance, you’ll provide financial guidance on business negotiations, particularly in relation to FX and working capital.
• Shaping the budgeting process - you’ll ensure seamless collaboration between your team and FP&A, ensuring financial inputs are accurate, strategic, and actionable.

This is a fantastic opportunity for a finance leader who thrives on balancing technical excellence with commercial impact. If you’re excited by the challenge of shaping financial strategy in a high-growth tech environment, bringing fresh perspectives, and driving meaningful change, this role offers the chance to make a real difference. You’ll play a key role in scaling a business that’s transforming the way people travel - inspiring millions of people across the UK and Europe to choose smarter, more sustainable journeys every day.

Qualifications

We’re looking for creative big thinkers with small egos to achieve our ambitious plans. You’ll be an ACA, ICAS or ACCA qualified accountant with a practice background and an impressive track record financial reporting within a listed UK PLC. You may have moved into a more divisional or FP&A oriented role in recent years, but the blend of strong technical accounting, proven commercial thinking and business partnering to C level you bring will be clear. Whether you have previous experience within e-commerce or technology, or broader, consumer-led experience, you’ll be at your best working with pace and energy within a fast moving, growth environment.

Key attributes you bring should include:

• A Chartered Accountant qualification with 10+ years of post-qualification experience - bringing deep technical expertise and leadership in financial control.
• A strong technical accounting background - being the ultimate decision-maker on accounting application, ensuring compliance and best practice.
• The ability to balance technical rigor with commercial insight - you understand how accounting decisions impact the wider business and can navigate operational complexities with a strategic mindset.
• Proven experience working at an Executive level - whether through business partnering, financial control, or a role outside core finance, you know how to engage and influence senior stakeholders.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills - you can confidently write for the Board and Audit Committee with minimal review input and present complex financial matters with clarity.
• Expertise in consolidation accounting - including managing FX treatment across multi-currency consolidations, handling complex eliminations, and integrating new entities within different chart of accounts.
• A track record of driving system and process improvements - particularly in scaling teams and finance processes to support business growth and efficiency.
• Additional experience that would be a plus includes acquisitions, managing share-based payment schemes, impairment testing, valuation methodology, and conducting Going Concern and viability analysis.
• Exposure to refinancing would be advantageous (although but not essential) – we anticipate a refinancing event within the next 12 months.

Additional Information

Enjoy fantastic perks like private healthcare & dental insurance, a generous work from abroad policy, 2-for-1 share purchase plans, extra festive time off, and many other benefits.

We prioritise career growth with clear career paths, transparent pay bands, personal learning budgets, and regular learning days. Jump on board and supercharge your career from day one!

Our values represent the things that matter most to us and what we live and breathe every day, in everything we do:

• Think Big- We're building the future of rail
• ️Own It- We focus on every customer, partner and journey

We value open expression at Trainline, we believe it’s the diversity of experience, backgrounds and perspectives of our employees that makes us who we are. We encourage everybody to play a part in changing the way people travel across the world.