Staff Software Engineer, Backend - Platform (FinHub - Ledger)

Coinbase Careers Page

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

Ready to be pushed beyond what you think you’re capable of? At Coinbase, our mission is to increase economic freedom in the world. It’s a massive, ambitious opportunity that demands the best of us, every day, as we build the emerging onchain platform — and with it, the future global financial system. To achieve our mission, we’re seeking a very specific candidate. We want someone who is passionate about our mission and who believes in the power of crypto and blockchain technology to update the financial system. We want someone who is eager to leave their mark on the world, who relishes the pressure and privilege of working with high caliber colleagues, and who actively seeks feedback to keep leveling up. We want someone who will run towards, not away from, solving the company’s hardest problems. Our work culture is intense and isn’t for everyone. But if you want to build the future alongside others who excel in their disciplines and expect the same from you, there’s no better place to be. While many roles at Coinbase are remote-first, we are not remote-only. In-person participation is required throughout the year. Team and company-wide offsites are held multiple times annually to foster collaboration, connection, and alignment. Attendance is expected and fully supported. Ledger is one of the core services for Coinbase, responsible for processing transactions and managing the funds of our users. As one of Coinbase's most mission-critical services, Ledger sits at the core of our platform, processing billions in transactions and securing the assets of millions of users. Today, our scale and complexity of operations have far surpassed the original design of Ledger and fund management systems. This presents a rare and exciting opportunity to rearchitect foundational infrastructure that will shape Coinbase's success for the next decade. We're seeking a technical leader to own the architectural direction of Ledger, drive platform improvements, and lead high-impact cross-functional projects. You'll make critical technical decisions, raise the bar for engineering quality, and help define how we build reliable, scalable systems that process billions of transactions.

Requirements

8+ years building and operating large-scale distributed systems in production
Deep expertise in backend programming (e.g., Go, Python, Java) and cloud-native architecture
Proven track record designing highly available, high-performance systems
Ability to anticipate scaling bottlenecks and take proactive measures
Experience leading cross-functional technical initiatives and mentoring engineers
Ability to distill complex technical concepts into clear, actionable solutions

Nice To Haves

Experience designing and operating ledgering or trading systems at scale
Experience with financial data, accounting systems, or high-precision transaction processing
Experience with Go, Kubernetes, Postgres, or similar technologies
You have gone through rapid growth in your company (from startup to mid-size)

Responsibilities

Architect and build foundational backend systems with a focus on performance, scalability, and reliability
Drive strategic technical direction for complex, cross-team initiatives
Establish and evolve platform best practices, frameworks, and architectural standards within the team
Provide deep technical mentorship, guide design decisions, and raise the bar for engineering quality
Collaborate with product, finance, and engineering leadership to shape the team's technical roadmap
Drive system improvements by embedding AI into engineering and operational practices