Senior Software Engineer, Backend (PBA - Growth)

Affirm; Canada; Hybrid; CAD 153,000 - 213,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health coverage for you and dependents

Monthly tech stipends

Flexible time off and holidays

Equity via ESPP

Job summary

Affirm’s Engineering team builds reliable, scalable backend systems powering critical payment and servicing platforms. This remote Canada role focuses on delivering high-impact features with ownership and quality.

You’ll design and ship backend services using Python or Kotlin, run on AWS with MySQL and Kubernetes, and collaborate with product, design, and analytics. A Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience is required.

Qualifications

• 4+ years of backend design, development and delivery experience.
• Proven ability to ship highly available distributed systems.
• Experience defining technical plans for major features or components.
• Ability to write high quality, maintainable code in Python or Kotlin.

Responsibilities

• Own quarterly goals for your team and lead engineers through ambiguity.
• Collaborate with product, design and analytics across the lifecycle.
• Proactively identify and solve project, process, tech, or business issues.
• Maintain and monitor team artifacts and support on-call duties.

Skills

Python/Kotlin

Distributed systems

AWS

MySQL

Kubernetes

System design & scalability

Ownership & growth

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent

Tools

AWS

Kubernetes

MySQL

Job description

Remote Canada

At Affirm, we exist for the moments that matter—giving people a clear, predictable way to pay over time, with no hidden fees, no surprises, and no tradeoffs on what matters most.

The Engineering team builds systems that power Affirm’s mission. We take pride in our craft, building reliable, performant, and scalable solutions that touch every part of the business. Whether we’re enabling new ways to pay, ensuring our platforms can scale to the most demanding levels in the industry, or developing seamless servicing experiences, our focus is on solving complex problems through exceptional engineering.

The Powered by Affirm (PBA) team builds the APIs and solutions that power all of Affirm’s integrations with Enterprise Merchants and Partners. We create and manage the APIs and tools that drive checkout and merchant onboarding, and we collaborate with stakeholders to design and build custom end-to-end integrated solutions.

What You'll Do

• You will be responsible for owning and delivering quarterly goals for your team, leading engineers on your team through ambiguity to solve open-ended problems, and ensuring that everyone is supported throughout delivery.
• You will support your peers and stakeholders in the product development lifecycle by collaborating with product management, design & analytics by participating in ideation, articulating technical constraints, and partnering on decisions that properly consider risks and trade-offs.
• You will proactively identify project, process, technology or business issues, advocate for them, and lead in solving them.
• You will support the operations and availability of your team’s artifacts by creating and monitoring metrics, escalating when needed, and supporting “keep the lights on” & on-call efforts.
• You will foster a culture of quality and ownership on your team by setting or improving code review and design standards for your team, and advocating for them beyond your team through your writing and tech talks.
• You will help develop talent on your team by providing feedback and guidance, and leading by example.

What We Look For

• You have 4+ years of experience designing, developing and launching backend systems at scale using languages like Python or Kotlin.
• You have a track record of developing highly available distributed systems using technologies like AWS, MySQL and Kubernetes.
• You have experience defining a technical plan for the delivery of a significant feature or system component with an elegant, simple and extensible design. You write high quality code that is easily understood and used by others.
• You are proficient at making significant changes in a large code base, and have developed a suite of tools and practices that enable you and your team to do so safely.
• Your experience demonstrates that you take ownership of your growth, proactively seeking feedback from your team, your manager, and your stakeholders.
• You have strong verbal and written communication skills that support effective collaboration with our global engineering team.
• This position requires either equivalent practical experience or a Bachelor’s degree in a related field.

Base Pay Grade

- N

Equity Grade

- 6

Employees new to Affirm typically come in at the start of the pay range. Affirm focuses on providing a simple and transparent pay structure which is based on a variety of factors, including location, experience and job-related skills.

Base pay is part of a total compensation package that may include monthly stipends for health, wellness and tech spending, and benefits (including 100% subsidized medical coverage, dental and vision for you and your dependents). In addition, the employees may be eligible for equity rewards offered by Affirm Holdings, Inc. (parent company).

CAN base pay range per year: CAD $153,000 - $213,000

Location - Remote Canada

This remote role is open only to candidates residing in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, or Saskatchewan.

Remote-first with flexibility built in

Affirm is proud to be a remote-first company. Most roles can be done from almost anywhere within the country of employment. Some positions may occasionally require in-person work at an Affirm office, and a few are office-based due to the nature of the work. All new hires will be invited to attend an in-person onboarding experience.

Benefits designed for you

• Health coverage at no cost: We cover 100% of premiums for employees and their dependents.
• Spending stipends: Monthly stipends support your tech setup, and the ability to choose health and wellness options that are right for you.
• Time off to recharge: Flexible time off and generous holiday calendars help you rest when you need to.
• Own a piece of what you build: Our employee stock purchase plan (ESPP) lets you buy Affirm stock at a discount.

We’re committed to providing an inclusive interview process, including accommodations for candidates with disabilities. If you need support, we’re happy to help.

For positions based in San Francisco or Los Angeles: Affirm considers qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, as required by law.