Summary

The team

The Banking & Payments team is a critical part of Kraken’s Business Operations group. We build and manage strategic partnerships with global banks and financial institutions that power Kraken’s entire ecosystem.

Through these partnerships, we enable smooth, secure, and scalable access to financial infrastructure that supports all Kraken products - from spot trading and staking to institutional custody and emerging services.

Our mission is to make Kraken the most trusted, accessible, and innovative platform for digital and traditional assets worldwide.

As a Senior Manager, Banking & Payments, you will lead Kraken’s global banking relationships. You will identify, negotiate, and manage bank and financial institution partnerships that grow and expand Kraken’s products and directly enable launch of new product and country launches.

The opportunity

1. Lead Global Partnerships: Build and manage relationships with global banks, financial institutions, and payment partners to support Kraken’s growth and operational needs.
2. Strategic Execution: Shape and implement Kraken’s Global Hybrid Banking Strategy, identifying and executing high-impact opportunities that enhance our platform capabilities.
3. Commercial Leadership: Negotiate and manage commercial terms and agreements that optimize partner performance, reduce costs, and increase service quality.
4. Operational Excellence: Oversee end-to-end execution of banking operations to ensure seamless liquidity, treasury management, and 24x7 client transaction processing.
5. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Finance, Legal, Treasury, Compliance, Product, and Engineering teams to deliver integrated solutions supporting all business lines and geographies.
6. Risk & Compliance Alignment: Work with Risk, Security, and Audit teams to assess and mitigate partner-related risks while maintaining regulatory compliance.
7. Performance Management: Establish clear metrics, governance frameworks, and continuous improvement initiatives for all banking partnerships.
8. Market Insight: Stay informed on banking, payments, and cryptocurrency trends to anticipate opportunities and challenges in an evolving regulatory and competitive landscape.

Skills you should HODL

1. 5+ years of experience in banking, payments, or financial services, with a focus on partnership management, transaction banking, or financial infrastructure.
2. Proven success negotiating and managing complex, high-value partnerships across multiple regions (UK, EMEA, and APAC preferred).
3. Strong understanding of banking systems, payments rails, liquidity management, and financial compliance frameworks (including BSA/AML/KYC).
4. Demonstrated ability to lead strategic initiatives, influence senior stakeholders, and deliver measurable business outcomes.
5. Exceptional commercial acumen, analytical thinking, and communication skills.
6. Ability to thrive in a dynamic, high-growth environment with global reach.
7. Passion for innovation in digital finance and cryptocurrency.
8. Willingness to travel internationally (up to 25%)
9. While UK-based candidates are preferred, we welcome applications from qualified candidates across Europe

Skills

• Accounting
• Analytical Thinking
• Communications Skills
• Leadership
• Team Collaboration