Senior Corporate Accountant

Job: Senior Corporate Accountant

Primary Location: US-Delaware-Wilmington (not in the city)

Schedule: Full-time (40 hours per week)

First State Trust Company ("FSTC") is a Delaware chartered trust company with offices in Wilmington, Delaware, and West Palm Beach, Florida. FSTC is rapidly growing. This position is a new addition to the staff located in Wilmington, DE with a hybrid work schedule. 

Since 1982, FSTC has been providing corporate trust, custody, and administration services to trust clients. Formerly known as Citi Institutional Trust Company and dating back to its roots as E.F. Hutton Trust Company, FSTC has focused on strategic alliances with world-class financial service firms. Our strategic alliances allow clients to take advantage of FSTC's independent professional trust administration services, combined with the investment management services of their chosen provider. The Senior Corporate Accountant reports directly to the Controller. This role is responsible for maintaining and closing the monthly corporate and affiliate general ledgers, preparing account reconciliations and analytics while ensuring strict adherence to internal controls.

Core Responsibilities

1. Corporate Ledger Management & Financial Record Closings  

• Revenue and Expenses: Review, approve and release vendor invoices through the Accounts Payable System and ad hoc on a monthly basis by reconciling corporate fee revenue, ensuring trust administration fees, and ancillary service fees are accurately calculated and recognized. Record resultant revenue on the general ledger.  
• Corporate Reconciliations: Reconcile corporate bank accounts on a minimum weekly basis. Also, reconcile all balance sheet accounts on a monthly basis.
• Month-End Close: Prepare the preliminary financial closings by posting journal entries for expense accruals, prepayments, depreciation, amortization, intercompany service charge analyses.
• Business Analytics: Develop and maintain financial models, dashboards, and develop key performance indicators (KPIs) for senior management once the Controller has signed off on the closing.

2. Financial Reporting 

• Financial Statement Preparation: Assist the Controller in drafting corporate balance sheets, income statements (entity and business segments) on a monthly basis in accordance with GAAP. 

• Variance Analysis: Perform monthly variance analysis comparing actual corporate revenues and expenses against the annual budget and prior year.

• Rolling Forecast: Prepare an income statement forecast documenting material changes on a monthly basis by reviewing trends with stakeholders. 

• Annual Budget: Assist the Controller in preparing and finalizing annual budget for each trust entity 

• Board & Management Reporting: Prepare supporting schedules and financial slide decks for the executive leadership team and Board of Directors on a quarterly basis

3. Regulatory Compliance & Internal Controls

• Regulatory Filings: Assist the Controller in preparing required regulatory filings for state banking regulators.

• Enforce Internal Controls: Document financial and accounting policies and procedures that ensure internal controls over financial reporting and protect corporate assets in compliance with audit standards.

• Audits: Assist the Controller in working with external regulatory and corporate auditors by preparing audit workpapers and providing research where necessary.

• Fee Testing: Perform quarterly fee testing and reconcilement reporting

4. Payroll Support (serve as the designated backup for payroll processing during absences or peak activity periods.)

• Processing: Assist as needed with payroll data entry, validation, audits, and reconciliation activities.
• Validation: Review employee timesheets, earnings, deductions, benefits, and tax information for accuracy by comparing to HR data provided by TPG.
• Tax and Benefits and payments: ensure payroll is processed accurately, and that proper remittances are made time to government and benefits providers.
• Payroll reporting and related record retention: make sure that regulatory and management requirements are met.

5. Compliance Department Support

• Supervision: Assist Controller with monitoring compliance-related requirements, deadlines, and reporting obligations.
• Regulatory examinations, audits, and compliance reviews: Assist Controller as needed for:
• Policy reviews and updates to ensure alignment with regulatory changes
• Support employee compliance training initiatives and tracking requirements.
• Collaborate with compliance personnel on risk assessments, internal controls, and corrective action tracking

6. Process Improvement & Cross-Functional Support

• Identify opportunities to improve reporting efficiency, data accuracy, and internal processes.

• Partner with Finance, Human Resources, Operations, and Compliance teams on special projects.

• Assist with system implementations, data validations, and process documentation.

• Provide analytical support for strategic initiatives and business decisions.

Requirements & Qualifications

1. Education & Professional Credentials

• Degree: Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance.

• Certification: Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and/or Certified Management Accountant (CMA) designation is highly preferred or actively pursued.

2. Experience

• 3 to 5 years of progressive hands-on corporate accounting experience dealing with all aspects of maintaining books and records and financial reporting.

• Sector Background: Experience working in corporate accounting within financial services, banking, wealth management, or public accounting auditing financial institutions.

• Equivalent combination of education and relevant experience will be considered.

3. Technical & Hard Skills

• Corporate Accounting Mastery: Strong technical knowledge of US GAAP, revenue recognition and lease rules and financial statement and footnote preparation.

• Corporate ERP & Software: High proficiency with corporate accounting software (e.g., QuickBooks, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Microsoft Dynamics) and advanced Microsoft Excel (V and X LOOKUPs, Pivot Tables, financial modeling) Experience with Power BI, Tableau, or other business intelligence tools is preferred. Familiarity through experimentation with AI tools in accounting is a plus.

• Fiduciary Industry Awareness: A baseline understanding of how trust companies operate, handle client assets, and generate fee-based revenue.

4. Soft Skills & Behavioral Attributes

• Organizational Leadership: Ability to operate independently, manage tight month-end deadlines, and proactively solve accounting anomalies.

• Analytical Problem Solving: Sharp eye for identifying trends, anomalies, or cost-saving opportunities within corporate expenses.

• Communication: Excellent written and verbal communication skills and use of Power Point or similar platforms.

• Discretion & Integrity: High level of integrity required when dealing with sensitive corporate financial data, payroll allocations, and executive metrics.

• Strong sense of accountability and ownership.

• Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines.

• Team-oriented mindset with strong customer service skills