Director of Engineering

DriveWealth; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 250,000 - 280,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Disability insurance

Paid parental leave

Wellness reimbursement

Company phone

Personal development allowance

PTO & holidays

401(k) match

Equity

Job summary

DriveWealth is recruiting a Director of Engineering to shape the vision and execution of our engineering organization. You will drive architectural excellence, partner with product and operations, and scale a high-performance team building a resilient brokerage platform.

You will lead multi-tenant architecture across assets, embrace AI/automation, and ensure regulatory compliance while delivering innovative, cost-aware solutions in a hybrid work environment.

Qualifications

• 12+ years in engineering leadership.
• Experience architecting high-availability, scalable systems.
• Brokerage tech experience in a B2B setting is a plus.
• Strong stakeholder communication and collaboration skills.

Responsibilities

• Architectural design and oversight of scalable, secure systems across the brokerage platform.
• Lead platform and partner account architecture for multi-tenant solutions.
• Drive strategic roadmap delivery for multiple asset classes and products, including AI/automation initiatives.
• Mentor and expand engineering teams, fostering accountability and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with product and operations to deliver mission-critical solutions on schedule.
• Promote agile practices, CI/CD, automated testing, and proactive monitoring.

Skills

Engineering leadership

High-availability systems

Java & Kafka

APIs & microservices

SQL/NoSQL databases

Docker & Kubernetes

AWS/Azure/GCP

Brokerage B2B domain

Cross-functional communication

Cost optimization

Legacy system modernization

AI/Automation

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS

Azure

GCP

Java

Kafka

Job description

About Us

DriveWealth is on a mission to make investing easier. We believe that everyone should have the ability to control their financial future, and that access to financial markets should not be limited by geography, wealth, or legacy systems. We are a global B2B financial technology organization dedicated to democratizing access to financial independence around the world. Our mission is realized through an API-based platform, empowering our partners to offer seamless investing and trading experiences to clients worldwide, all from their mobile devices. Our technology provides partners with a modern, extensible toolkit, enabling traditional investment workflows and innovative techniques like fractional share ownership. DriveWealth has evolved into a global platform offering trading of US equities, mutual funds, ETFs, fixed income, and options.

There’s never been a better time to build a category-defining business and there has rarely been a team better positioned for this opportunity. Our culture blends the pace and agility of a fintech start-up with the impact, stability, and discipline of Wall Street. We encourage creativity and experimentation while ensuring institutional-grade execution and regulatory compliance in everything we do. Join us and help build the future of global investing!

About the Role

Join our dynamic, fast-growing fintech company that's revolutionizing financial services through technology. As Director of Engineering, you will be a senior leader responsible for shaping the vision and execution of our engineering organization and drive innovation and operational excellence across our critical systems. You will be responsible for solution architecture for critical business initiatives, including expansion of new products while driving a culture of engineering quality, operational excellence, and continuous improvement. Partnering with other engineering managers, you will align technology initiatives with our ambitious growth strategy, ensuring our platforms remain robust, scalable, and secure.

If you are passionate about building and scaling high-performance financial infrastructure and aligning technology execution with business outcomes, this is an opportunity to have a transformational impact on the future of our brokerage platform.

What You’ll Do

• Architectural Excellence: Oversee the design and development of scalable, resilient, and secure systems, leveraging modern architectures such as microservices, API-driven, and event-driven designs
• Platform & Partner Account Architecture: Lead solution architecture for sub-account and partner-level ledger capabilities, enabling multi-tenant account structuring across the brokerage platform
• Execute the Strategic Vision for the Brokerage Platform: Deliver critical business-driven products and enhancements across multiple asset classes and other product features. Experience with Digital Assets, Options or Reg-T Margin is a huge plus
• Core Platform Development: Contribute to the development of architecture framework, common libraries, developer tools to improve developer velocity
• AI/Automation: Identify and execute opportunities to embed Agentic AI/automation in business processes and products
• Team Empowerment: Lead, mentor, and expand high-performing engineering team(s), fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with product, operations, and other senior leaders to prioritize initiatives and deliver mission-critical solutions on schedule
• Operational Mastery: Champion best practices in agile development, CI/CD, automated testing, and proactive monitoring to ensure 24x7 operational excellence and regulatory compliance
• Innovation & Quality: Drive the adoption of cutting-edge technologies including AI and methodologies that optimize performance, reduce costs, and enhance system reliability

You Bring

• Extensive Experience: 12+ years in engineering leadership, with a proven track record of scaling engineering team(s) in fast-paced, technology-driven environments
• Technical Expertise: Deep knowledge in architecting and implementing high-availability, scalable systems, including microservices, API-driven, and event-driven architectures using Java, Kafka, SQL/No SQL databases
• Cloud & Container Proficiency: Significant experience with containerization (Docker, Kubernetes) and cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud)
• Brokerage Experience in B2B setting: A solid understanding of financial services technology, particularly within brokerage platforms in a B2B setting;
• Communication Skills: Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills with a knack for fostering strong stakeholder relationships and cross-functional collaboration
• Innovative Mindset: A passion for solving complex problems and a relentless drive to push technological boundaries while balancing strategic vision with day-to-day execution
• Expertise in advanced architectural patterns and distributed systems
• Experience modernizing legacy systems and driving cost optimization within capital markets or financial services

Special Knowledge (Nice to Have, But Not Required)

• Familiarity with Agile frameworks (e.g., SAFe) for scaling agile practices across large organizations
• Deep knowledge of brokerage operations, digital assets including margin, clearing, settlements, and regulatory compliance
• Hands-on experience with the mind set of rolling up sleeves as needed

Location

This role is open to candidates in the following locations: New York, NY and Chicago IL - Hybrid

• If based in New York: This role is expected to come into the office 3 days a week on a cadence set by the Hiring Manager/Team
  Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S. DriveWealth does not sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time

Pay Range: $250,000 - $280,000 USD

Working at DriveWealth

We do our best work when we're in the same room. To maintain the speed our partners expect, our New York, Chicago, and Lithuania teams work in office on a hybrid schedule. We've found that being physically side-by-side is the only way to solve complex problems in real-time and stay truly accountable to the products we ship. When you're here, you're working directly with the people making the decisions.

To support that work, we provide competitive compensation, equity, and a 401(k) match. We also offer Medical insurance, Dental insurance, Vision insurance, Disability insurance, and Paid Parental Leave, along with a wellness reimbursement, a company-provided phone, and a personal development allowance. Finally, we value the time you spend away from the office with generous Paid Time Off (PTO) and observed holidays.

Work Authorization

Applicants must possess the legal right to work in the country where the position is located at the time of application. DriveWealth requires all employees to provide original documentation verifying their work authorization on or before their first day of employment.

For US-based roles: Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis without the need for current or future visa sponsorship. DriveWealth does not provide visa sponsorship or support for employment authorization, including transfers, at this time. Offers of employment are strictly contingent upon an individual’s ability to secure and maintain the legal right to work at the Company.

How We Think About AI

We leverage AI to work smarter and move faster. We seek AI-curious talent who are proactive about using emerging tools to increase signal quality, reduce friction, and improve outcomes to deliver products faster, provide better service to our partners, and to streamline processes. Your ability to leverage our internal tools and technology to drive results is as important to us as your core domain expertise.

Compensation

Pay is generally based on the level, complexity, responsibility, location, and job duties/requirements of the specific position. We then source candidates with the requisite skills, expertise, training, and experience. If you are selected for an interview, please feel welcome to speak to a recruiter about our compensation philosophy and other available benefits. This role is eligible for base, bonus, equity, 401(k) match, and heavily subsidized benefits and perks.

Equal Employment Opportunity

To build technology and products that are used and loved by people and solve real-world problems, we need to build a team with many different perspectives and experiences. We are an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply.

Agency Disclaimer

DriveWealth does not accept agency resumes. Do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, employees, or any other organization location. DriveWealth is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.