Principal Software Engineer

Job Title: Principal Software Engineer, Newline

Duration: 7+ Months - Can be extended

Location: 100% Remote

TECHNICAL SKILLS

Must Have

• AWS
• Ruby (Rails) and/or Java
• Strong experience debugging production issues end-to-end (code infra data dependencies)

JOB SUMMARY

• Full lifecycle applica

JOB DESCRIPTION

Principal Software Engineer, Newline

About Newline

• Newline by Fifth Third is an enterprise-grade embedded finance platform powering the next generation of financial products. We provide API-first infrastructure and managed services that enable startups and enterprises to build, launch, and scale compliant banking, payments, and lending experiences.
• From fintech and payments to banking-as-a-service and lending platforms, Newline helps clients deliver financial capabilities directly within their products. Backed by Fifth Third s long legacy of innovation from early payment networks to scaling global processing infrastructure Newline combines world-class banking, risk management, and technology to unlock modern financial ecosystems.

GENERAL FUNCTION

• We re hiring a Principal Software Engineer to operate at the intersection of software engineering, production systems, and embedded payments a hands-on technical leader who thrives in complex, high-scale environments and wants to directly influence how production systems behave.
• This is not a traditional support role. You ll be embedded with our operations function as an engineer, partnering across product, SRE, and platform teams to diagnose complex issues, improve system reliability, and turn production learnings into durable platform improvements.
• If you re someone who enjoys debugging distributed systems, understanding transaction lifecycles, and making systems fundamentally more reliable over time, this is a high-impact role.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

What you ll Do

• You will focus on improving system reliability by diagnosing complex production issues and driving systemic fixes across the platform:
• Lead complex production triage and incident response across APIs, payment flows, distributed services, infrastructure, and data layers
• Debug real-world issues involving transaction lifecycles, integrations, and system dependencies
• Partner with engineering to turn incidents into permanent fixes, not recurring problems
• Improve platform reliability through code changes, automation, observability, and better system design

Build and enhance:

• Monitoring and alerting strategies
• Runbooks and diagnostic workflows
• Operational tooling and automation
• Work across a mixed stack including Ruby (Rails), Java, AWS, APIs, and data systems
• Help teams design systems that are observable, debuggable, and resilient from day one
• Mentor engineers and influence best practices across engineering, SRE, and operations

MINIMUM KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES REQUIRED

• 8+ years in software engineering, SRE, production engineering, or building and operating distributed systems
• Strong experience debugging production issues end-to-end (code infra data dependencies)

Experience with:

• Ruby (Rails) and/or Java services
• AWS and cloud-native environments
• APIs, microservices, and distributed systems troubleshooting
• SQL and data-level investigation
• Hands-on experience with observability tools (Splunk, Datadog, New Relic, etc.)

Deep understanding of:

• System behavior in production
• Fault isolation
• Performance and resiliency patterns
• Ability to operate calmly and effectively during incidents and escalations
• Strong communication skills comfortable explaining complex issues to technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Experience in payments, fintech, or regulated environments is strongly preferred
• Bachelor s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent experience

WHY JOIN NEWLINE?

• Help operate and scale a modern embedded finance platform backed by a top U.S. bank
• Work at the intersection of fintech innovation, real-time payments, operational excellence, and enterprise-grade reliability
• Solve complex technical problems across payment flows, application services, infrastructure, observability, and client-impacting operations
• Be part of a culture focused on ownership, learning, automation, and continuous improvement