Employer: Lesaka Technologies
Industry: Financial Technology (Fintech), Banking, Payments & Financial Services
Location: Johannesburg, Gauteng (On-Site / Hybrid)
Position Type: Full-Time Permanent
Experience Level: Entry Level (0–2 Years Experience / Recent Graduates)
Compensation: Market-Related Entry-Level Fintech Salary
Posted Date: 09 October 2026
Closing Date: 15 October 2026
About Lesaka Technologies & The Junior Data Analyst Role
Lesaka Technologies is a leading South African financial technology enterprise delivering proprietary banking, payment, lending, insurance, and merchant acquiring solutions across Southern Africa (B2C & B2B).
Lesaka is recruiting a Junior Data Analyst (Finance) to join their Finance department in Johannesburg. This entry-level role focuses on building financial models, designing Power BI/Looker Studio dashboards, running SQL queries, and automating recurring reporting cycles. Working closely with senior financial analysts and business partners, the role provides a strong foundation in budgeting, variance analysis, forecasting, and Google Cloud BigQuery analytics.
Key Responsibilities & Operational Deliverables
The Junior Data Analyst will manage five primary functional focus areas:
1. Financial Modelling & Variance Analysis
- Model Building: Build, update, and maintain financial models to support corporate budgeting, financial forecasting, and scenario analysis.
- Variance Tracking: Assist with variance analysis, comparing actual financial performance against budgets/forecasts to identify operational drivers.
- Ad Hoc Insights: Support senior finance leads with ad hoc financial modeling and maintain version control across workbooks.
2. Reporting & Data Visualisation
- Dashboard Creation: Design, refine, and maintain management dashboards and scorecards using Power BI and/or Looker Studio.
- Process Automation: Automate recurring financial reporting processes to improve accuracy and turnaround times.
3. Data Analytics & Cloud Systems Enablement
- SQL Querying: Write and optimize SQL queries to extract, clean, and structure data from operational and financial databases.
- Google Cloud Console: Utilize Google Cloud Platform (GCP / BigQuery) to source, query, and consolidate transactional and finance data.
4. Stakeholder Business Partnering
- Management Reporting: Prepare clear financial summaries, commentaries, and presentation decks for executive and governance meetings.
5. Process Improvement & Audit Controls
- Documentation: Document reporting logic, data lineage, and financial model formulas to ensure knowledge continuity and audit readiness.
Candidate Profile & Minimum Entry Requirements
To qualify for consideration for this role, applicants must meet the following mandatory criteria:
- Educational Qualifications:
- Completed Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Analytics, Data Science, or a related quantitative field (Mandatory).
- Work Experience:
- 0 to 2 years of experience in a finance, reporting, data, or business analysis role (Graduates & Junior Analysts welcome).
- Core Technical Competencies:
- Solid Advanced MS Excel skills (formulas, pivot tables, scenario and sensitivity analysis).
- Basic working knowledge of SQL for database querying and data extraction.
- Good understanding of financial statements, budgeting, and forecasting fundamentals.
- Advantageous Criteria (Not Mandatory but Beneficial):
- Exposure to Power BI, Looker Studio, or similar BI tools.
- Working knowledge of Google Cloud Console (BigQuery).
- Basic exposure to Python for data analysis and scripting automation.
- Previous internship or vacation work experience within a fintech, banking, or financial services environment.
- Personal Attributes:
- High attention to detail with numerical precision and strong communication skills.
- Eagerness to learn, take ownership, and manage tight reporting deadlines.
Position Benefits & Career Pathway
- Fintech Career Launchpad: Hands-on exposure inside one of Southern Africa’s premier listed financial technology companies.
- Modern Tech Stack Experience: Direct practical learning in SQL, BigQuery, Power BI, Looker Studio, and Python.
- Mentorship: Direct coaching from senior finance business partners and data specialists.
Career Advice for Applicants
- Highlight Technical Stack: Place your SQL, Excel, Power BI, BigQuery, or Python skills at the top of page 1 on your CV.
- Detail Academic / Project Experience: If you are a recent graduate, feature university data analysis projects, thesis modeling, or financial reporting assignments.
- Apply Urgently: This application window closes on 15 October 2026—ensure your CV and degree transcript are uploaded immediately.
Sample Selection & Interview Questions
Financial Analytics & SQL Querying
- Question (Data Extraction): “How do you write a basic SQL query using JOINs and GROUP BY clauses to extract monthly revenue figures from a cloud database like BigQuery?”
- Question (Financial Variance): “Walk us through how you build an Excel financial model to analyze actual expenditure versus budget and highlight significant variances.”
How to Apply
Apply online directly via the official Lesaka Technologies Careers Portal before the urgent deadline:
- Employer: Lesaka Technologies
- Location: Johannesburg, Gauteng
- Position: Junior Data Analyst – Finance
- Closing Date: 15 October 2026