Staff Software Engineer

Loop; Toronto; On-site; CAD 170,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

A fintech startup is seeking a Staff Software Engineer to lead architectural decisions across its platform. You'll mentor engineers, build systems, and set the technical direction for backend and frontend features. The role requires 8+ years of experience in distributed systems and expertise in financial applications. This position is onsite in downtown Toronto and offers a salary range of CAD$170,000 to CAD$200,000 plus equity and benefits.

Benefits

Equity

Health benefits

Kitchen with snacks

Catered lunches on Fridays

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in building and scaling distributed systems.
• Comfortable across backend, frontend, and infrastructure.
• Experience with high-stakes data applications.

Responsibilities

• Lead architectural decisions across the full platform.
• Build end-to-end features and set technical direction.
• Partner with product and leadership to shape technical strategy.

Skills

Building and scaling distributed systems

Full-stack expertise

Experience with financial systems

Architecting data-intensive applications

Fault-tolerant system design

Strong product instincts

Explaining complex concepts

Mentorship

Tools

Ruby

PostgreSQL

React

Job description

We're a fast-growing fintech startup building the only truly cross-border banking platform. We help businesses seamlessly manage money around the world so they can access more markets, accelerate their growth, and simplify their operations. We're looking for ambitious people to join our mission.

We're looking for engineers with a product mindset - people who think about the user's problem first, not just the component they're building. You'll work directly with stakeholders, make trade-off decisions, and own outcomes, not just output.

About the Role

Hi, I'm Yan, Head of Engineering at Loop, and I'm hiring a Staff Software Engineer to be a technical leader across our entire platform. In this role, you'll set architectural direction, mentor engineers, and build critical systems yourself - from our core ledger and money movement infrastructure to the product features that customers interact with daily.

This is an onsite position at our downtown Toronto office (Adelaide and Spadina).

Why We Exist

Small businesses have been underserved by traditional banks. Most businesses operate globally, yet moving money across borders is still painfully hard. Banking fees are opaque, while the process and time to send or receive money internationally is decades old. The tools offered to businesses are only suitable for companies with finance and treasury teams of 20.

Loop exists to change that.

We're building the banking infrastructure for businesses that operate globally by default. Multi-currency accounts. Seamless international payments. Modern systems to manage company finances. The things that should have existed years ago.

What You'll Be Doing

• Lead architectural decisions across the full platform - backend, frontend, infrastructure
• Build end-to-end features while setting technical direction for the team
• Architect our core ledger, money movement systems, and customer-facing product
• Partner with product and leadership to shape technical strategy
• Make technical decisions that balance innovation with reliability
• Own resolution of complex technical issues across the stack
• Mentor engineers and raise the bar for technical excellence
• Stay hands-on - you'll write code, not just draw diagrams

What We're Looking For

• 8+ years building and scaling distributed systems
• Full-stack expertise - you're comfortable across backend, frontend, and infrastructure
• Experience with financial systems, payment platforms, or high-stakes data applications
• Track record architecting data-intensive, highly concurrent applications
• Expertise in fault-tolerant system design and consistency trade-offs
• Strong product instincts - you understand why we're building, not just what
• You can explain complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders
• You make others around you better

Bonus: Security engineering background, accounting/reporting knowledge, experience with our stack (Ruby, PostgreSQL, React).

What we offer

• Salary range CAD$170,000 to CAD$200,000 base annual, commensurate with experience
• Equity ranging 0.01-0.1%
• Enrollment in group's health benefits after probation period
• This role is onsite in our downtown Toronto office
• Kitchen full of snacks and drinks to keep you going throughout the day
• Catered lunch on Fridays (we take recommendations!)

The Challenge

Before we talk, show us how you think:

Loop is adding real-time payment rails (think FedNow or Real-Time Rail Canada). Our current architecture handles batch settlement well, but real-time is different - sub-second processing, immediate finality, different failure modes.

In under 500 words, outline the key architectural questions you'd want answered before designing this integration. What are the biggest risks? What would you prototype first? Don't design the whole system - show us how you think about large technical decisions.

Send your response to [e-mail] with the subject line "Staff - [Your Name]".

Interview Process

• 15 minutes video call to discuss the opportunity and the organization with Mandy, People and Business Operations Specialist
• 30 minutes video call conversation with Yan, Head of Engineering
• 90 minutes in person technical discussion with Ryan, Engineering Manager and one other senior developer
• 60 minutes in person meeting with Cato, CEO and Co-Founder and Sarah, Chief of Staff
• Come do a work trial with us for 4-5 days (this will be paid)
• Background check and offer

How to Apply

To apply for this position, please click “apply” and share your resume, alongside a brief paragraph about yourself and your previous experience. Don't forget to send us your challenge!

Your application will be reviewed by our recruiters and hiring managers; we do not use AI tools for screening or selection.

Loop is committed to creating a diverse culture. We encourage you to apply regardless of who you are or where you came from - what matters is the journey ahead. Put simply, if you’re unsure about your qualifications for this position, we’d still encourage you to apply!