Technical Lead - Payments & FinTech

Job Title: Lead Developer - Payment Integration Services

Location:

Company Overview

We are an established software services company embarking on a strategic initiative to build a center of excellence for payment technology. Our new venture focuses on developing, implementing, and debugging sophisticated payment integrations for leading banks. We are at the forefront of enabling seamless and secure financial transactions, and we are looking for a passionate leader to drive this critical function. 

Role Summary

We are seeking an experienced and highly skilled Lead Developer to spearhead our payment integration projects. The ideal candidate will be a hands-on technical leader with 7-8 years of experience in the financial services and/or payments domain. You will be responsible for leading a team of talented engineers in designing, developing, and maintaining robust and secure payment solutions that connect banks to global payment networks. 

This role requires a unique blend of deep technical expertise in modern programming languages, profound domain knowledge of payment systems (especially ISO 8583), and proven leadership capabilities to navigate the complexities of a banking environment. 

Key Responsibilities

• Technical Leadership & Architecture:

  Lead the architectural design and development of high-quality, scalable, and secure payment gateway solutions and API integrations. 

• Development & Implementation:

  Actively participate in coding, code reviews, and debugging of complex payment integration solutions using Java, .NET, or Node.js. 

• Project Delivery:

  Drive projects from conception to completion, ensuring they meet client requirements, industry standards, and are delivered on time. 

• Team Mentorship:

  Mentor, guide, and develop a team of software engineers, fostering a culture of technical excellence, innovation, and collaboration. 

• Stakeholder Collaboration:

  Serve as the primary technical point of contact for banking clients, payment providers, and internal business teams to ensure alignment and clear communication. 

• Quality & Security Assurance:

  Enforce rigorous testing standards and secure coding practices to ensure the reliability, performance, and compliance of all payment solutions. 

• Problem Solving:

  Troubleshoot and resolve complex, mission-critical issues in payment processing flows, often in high-pressure situations. 

Required Skills and Qualifications

Essential Domain Expertise in Payments (Mandatory)

A deep and practical understanding of the payments ecosystem is the most critical requirement for this role. 

• ISO 8583 Protocol:

  Expert-level, hands-on knowledge of the ISO 8583 messaging standard is non-negotiable. This must include: 
• Extensive experience in parsing, constructing, and manipulating ISO 8583 messages. 
• Deep understanding of Message Type Indicators (MTIs), Processing Codes, Data Elements, and Bitmaps. 
• Experience with various regional and network-specific dialects of ISO 8583. 

• Card Network Operations (Mastercard/Visa):

  Comprehensive knowledge of the end-to-end transaction lifecycle, including: 
• Authorization, clearing, and settlement processes. 
• Network message specifications and transaction flows for both credit and debit. 
• Experience with network certification processes and test simulators. 

• Security & Compliance:

  Profound understanding of payment security standards and practices. 

• PCI DSS:

  In-depth knowledge of Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard requirements and their implementation in software architecture. 
• Expertise in data encryption, tokenization, and secure management of sensitive cardholder data. 

• EMV & Card Technologies:

  Solid understanding of EMV standards for both contact and contactless (NFC) transactions, including knowledge of EMV data tags and transaction flows. 

Technical Skills

• Programming Languages:

  7+ years of hands-on development experience with expertise in

  one or more

  of the following: 

• Java:

  Spring Framework (Spring Boot, Spring Security), Hibernate/JPA, Maven/Gradle. 

• .NET:

  C#, ASP.NET Core, Entity Framework. 

• Node.js:

  Express.js, and a strong grasp of asynchronous programming. 

• API Development:

  Proven experience in designing, building, and securing RESTful APIs for financial services. 

• Database Systems:

  Proficiency with relational databases (e.g., PostgreSQL, Oracle) and familiarity with NoSQL databases. 

• DevOps Practices:

  Familiarity with CI/CD principles and tools (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI) is highly desirable. 

Leadership & Professional Skills

• Proven Leadership:

  Demonstrated experience in leading a software development team, including task allocation, performance management, and technical mentorship. 

• Banking Environment Experience:

  A strong understanding of the operational and security constraints of working within a bank's IT environment, including change control and risk management processes. 

• Communication & Collaboration:

  Exceptional communication skills with the ability to articulate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders. 

• Analytical Problem-Solving:

  Superior analytical and troubleshooting skills with a passion for solving complex technical puzzles under pressure. 

Educational Background

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related engineering field. 

What We Offer

• A competitive salary and benefits package. 
• The opportunity to lead and build a core practice area in a growing company. 
• A challenging and rewarding role working on high-impact projects with major financial institutions. 
• A culture of continuous learning and professional development.