Software Engineer (Crypto - SV) - US - 2026

Nubank•Palo Alto, CA

12d•Hybrid

About The Position

Nu is building secure, compliant crypto infrastructure that will expand financial access for millions of people across Latin America. In crypto, there is no margin for error — a mistake in production can be irreversible, with direct financial exposure. As we open our Silicon Valley engineering hub, we’re looking for a Lead Software Engineer, Crypto who thinks adversarially, builds defensively, and operates at the intersection of cryptography, distributed systems, and financial regulation. You’ll be part of a focused crypto team in Palo Alto, collaborating with security, compliance, and product teams across our global offices. Our crypto engineering culture values correctness above all — we design systems assuming they will be attacked, and build accordingly. We move deliberately, with a high bar for security reviews and code quality. In this role, you’ll own cryptographic systems, protocols, or blockchain infrastructure for your domain — key management, signing flows, consensus mechanisms, and on-chain integrations. You’ll ensure correctness, security, and regulatory compliance, and you’ll be the person who says “no, that’s not safe” and makes it stick.

Requirements

Track record of building and operating cryptographic systems, blockchain infrastructure, or secure financial systems in production.
Deep understanding of cryptographic primitives, key management, signing protocols, and consensus mechanisms.
Strong software engineering fundamentals with experience in languages used in crypto infrastructure (e.g., Go, Rust, Java, Python).
Experience designing systems with an adversarial mindset: threat modeling, security reviews, and defensive architecture.
Understanding of financial regulation as it applies to crypto and digital assets, with experience building compliant systems.
Demonstrated ability to make high-stakes engineering decisions where correctness and security are non-negotiable.
Experience collaborating with security, compliance, and legal teams on system design and review processes.

Nice To Haves

Experience with specific blockchain protocols (e.g., Ethereum, Bitcoin, Solana) and their integration patterns.
Background in DeFi protocols, custody solutions, or institutional crypto infrastructure.
Experience in fintech, payments, or other financial services environments with strict regulatory requirements.
Familiarity with HSMs, secure enclaves, and hardware-backed key management systems.
Proficiency with AI-assisted development tools and a thoughtful approach to leveraging AI in security-critical engineering.

Responsibilities

Own cryptographic systems, protocols, or blockchain infrastructure for your domain, including key management, signing flows, and on-chain integrations.
Design and implement secure, compliant crypto infrastructure that meets the highest standards for correctness and reliability.
Think adversarially: design systems assuming they will be attacked, conduct threat modeling, and build defensive architectures.
Navigate the intersection of cryptography, distributed systems, and financial regulation, ensuring all systems meet compliance requirements.
Lead security reviews and code quality processes for crypto-related systems, enforcing a high bar for production readiness.
Collaborate with security, compliance, and product teams to ensure crypto features are both safe and user-friendly.
Mentor peers on crypto engineering best practices and contribute to the team’s security-first engineering culture.