Head of Corporate Development

Mesh•San Francisco, CA

2d•$200,000 - $250,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Mesh is hiring its first dedicated Corporate Development lead, a foundational role with a direct impact on the company’s trajectory. This role sits at the intersection of strategy, finance, and technology, you'll need to be as comfortable in a data room as you are interrogating an API integration or stress-testing a settlement architecture with an engineering team. This is an opportunity to build and own our M&A and strategic partnerships function from the ground up. You’ll define how we identify, evaluate, and execute high-impact opportunities, working closely with leadership to shape where Mesh goes next. From setting strategy to building a pipeline to closing deals, you’ll operate across the full lifecycle, expanding our capabilities, licensing footprint, and distribution through thoughtful, well-executed partnerships and acquisitions. We’re looking for someone who thrives in early, unstructured environments, takes initiative, and is excited to turn ambition into action.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree in Business or Finance or related field
5+ years of experience in investment banking, growth, venture capital, product, or strategy roles, or in-house corporate development at a fintech or crypto company
You actually run deals, leading M&A or strategic partnerships from first conversation through close
Deep understanding of the fintech and payments industry (on-ramps, off-ramps, PSPs, acquirers, banking partners) and how money actually moves, including working knowledge of EMI / MSB / money transmitter licensing and the regulatory side of the stack
Strong grasp of crypto payments infrastructure (stablecoins, on/off-ramps, exchange integrations, custody, compliance), you know how the pieces fit together in the real world
You've evaluated or worked closely with crypto infrastructure at the API layer, whether that's exchange integrations, wallet SDKs, stablecoin settlement rails, or on/off-ramp architecture, and you understand how these systems connect in a real production environment
Comfortable getting into the weeds with crypto APIs and exchange integrations (or quick to ramp if you haven’t yet)
Sharp financial instincts with the ability to build models from scratch and pressure-test assumptions like a skeptic
Technically fluent enough to evaluate a target's API architecture, assess integration complexity into Mesh's stack, and hold a credible diligence conversation with an engineering team, you don't write code, but you know what questions to ask and what the answers mean
Clear, concise communicator who can turn complexity into compelling, board-ready narratives

Responsibilities

Build and own a high-quality pipeline of M&A opportunities and strategic partnerships across the crypto payments ecosystem
Lead deals end-to-end: from first outreach through diligence, negotiation, and close
Run rigorous diligence across financials, product architecture, API integrations, and commercial viability, you'll go deep enough on the technical stack to assess build-vs-buy tradeoffs, evaluate integration complexity, and identify engineering risk before it becomes a deal problem
Develop investment theses, deal frameworks, and scoring models; present insights directly to the CEO, SVP, and board
Partner closely with Legal and Finance to structure and negotiate deals that actually get done
Stay on top of the competitive landscape, tracking key players, emerging trends, and whitespace opportunities
Build and manage relationships with investment banks, advisors, and potential targets, becoming a go-to player in the ecosystem