Principal Architect Blockchain & Cross-Border Payments

We are partnering with a leading financial services organization in SFO seeking a Principal Architect to own and lead the security and technical architecture of a next-generation cross-border money movement platform.

This is a high-impact leadership role focused on blockchain settlement, stablecoin integration, and regulated payments infrastructure at enterprise scale.

If you ve architected large-scale payment systems and thrive at the intersection of blockchain, compliance, and financial innovation this is for you.

What You ll Do

• Own the security architecture for a cross-border payment solution designed for scalability, compliance, and resilience

• Architect and implement wallet management, transaction orchestration, liquidity, and settlement services

• Lead technical evaluation and integration of blockchain technologies, stablecoin protocols, and digital asset providers

• Influence protocol evolution through internal and external technical thought leadership

• Represent the organization in industry standards groups and regulatory working committees

• Design systems aligned with AML, KYC, OFAC, PCI-DSS, ISO 20022, NACHA, MAS/TRM, and other regulatory frameworks

• Define governance models, architectural standards, and technical operating patterns

• Serve as final escalation point for complex architectural decisions

• Mentor senior engineering teams and elevate smart contract security, observability, and traceability standards

• Prototype and validate new settlement models, interoperability paths, and wallet architectures

What We re Looking For

Required Experience

• Bachelor s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, IT, or equivalent experience

• 15+ years of software engineering experience

• 10+ years leading technology initiatives in complex enterprise environments

• 5+ years designing and operating large-scale distributed systems

• 5+ years implementing cloud-native solutions (containerization, CI/CD, automated testing, secure SDLC)

Deep Domain Expertise In:

• Blockchain consensus mechanisms & settlement models

• Cryptographic primitives & tokenization frameworks

• Stablecoin protocols & digital asset custody models

• Smart contract design, auditing & threat modeling

• Payment networks, FX, liquidity & reconciliation systems

• Zero-knowledge proofs and emerging Web3 security models

• Systems built within regulated financial environments

Leadership Profile

• Proven ability to resolve complex architectural debates

• Strong business acumen with executive communication skills

• Experience leading cross-functional teams across Product, Risk, Security, and Architecture

• Demonstrated ownership, urgency, and execution mindset

• Ability to mentor and energize high-performing engineering teams