Assistant Accountant, Mandarin

  • Job Reference: CJ1549
  • Date Posted: 31 March 2026
  • Recruiter: C James
  • Location: London
  • Salary: £40,000 to £50,000
  • Sector: Accounting
  • Job Type: Permanent
  • Work Hours: Full Time
  • Contact: Kai Mason
  • Email: km@c-james.com

Job Description

An international bank in London is looking to hire an Assistant Accountant who will CFO across a broad range of finance activities, with a particular focus on accounts payable, reconciliations, expense control, fixed assets, VAT support and financial reporting.

This is a strong opportunity for someone with solid accounts payable or junior finance experience who is looking to broaden their exposure within a well-structured finance environment.

Responsibilities

  • Support the CFO / Head of Finance & Accounting in the day-to-day running of the finance function
  • Maintain accurate accounting records and ensure strong financial controls are in place
  • Prepare daily controls and reconciliations of the trial balance, highlighting any issues for investigation
  • Review daily nostro positions and follow up on outstanding items with Operations
  • Review employee expense claims, invoice authorisations and departmental cost allocations before payment
  • Maintain filing and archiving systems for finance documentation
  • Reconcile fixed asset balances and depreciation movements to the trial balance
  • Reconcile accrued and prepaid expenses within the accounts payable system
  • Reconcile the administrative expenses bank account and help forecast monthly funding requirements
  • Prepare monthly and quarterly expense reports, including commentary on key variances
  • Support VAT record keeping and assist with periodic HMRC returns
  • Produce schedules and analysis to support budgeting and reforecasting
  • Respond to ad hoc finance queries and information requests from senior management and auditors

Skills / Experience Required

  • Around 3+ years’ experience in a finance, accounts payable or finance assistant position
  • Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance or a related discipline preferred
  • AAT, ACCA or equivalent qualified or part-qualified  
  • Good working knowledge of accounts payable processes and procedures
  • Experience using finance systems such as SAP, Sage or Xero 
  • Fluent Mandarin