Legal Counsel

Alpaca; San Francisco (CA); Remote; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive Salary & Stock Options

Health Benefits

Home-Office Setup: USD 500

Brex Card Stipend: USD 150/month

Job summary

Alpaca is seeking a Legal Counsel to navigate complex regulatory frameworks as we design and launch innovative financial products and services. You will provide practical, business-minded legal guidance across US broker-dealer regulation, digital assets, payments, and evolving financial services areas.

You will partner with Product, Brokerage, Crypto, Compliance, AML, Sales, and Success teams to support product reviews, regulatory engagement, and disputes, shaping Alpaca's scale in a fast-moving

Qualifications

• J.D. degree and active bar membership in at least one U.S. state.
• 5–7+ years of legal experience with focus on U.S. broker-dealer regulation and securities laws.
• Familiarity with U.S. cryptoasset regulatory regimes and AML requirements.
• Experience advising fintechs or financial institutions, ideally in startups or growth-stage environments.
• Excellent written and verbal communication with practical, business-oriented approach.

Responsibilities

• Navigate regulatory frameworks to design and implement innovative financial products and services.
• Lead legal reviews of product design, marketing, and onboarding for compliance and growth.
• Support digital assets, payments, and data privacy as needed.
• Advise on new or anticipated legal requirements across systems and policies.
• Monitor developments with SEC, FINRA, CFTC, FinCEN, OFAC and other regulators.
• Support regulatory engagement with agencies like the SEC and FINRA.
• Draft agreements, disclosures, policies, and procedures.
• Conduct legal research and provide practical guidance to internal stakeholders.
• Manage litigation, arbitration, and disputes with outside counsel.
• Partner with Product, Brokerage, Crypto, Compliance, AML, Sales and Success teams.

Skills

Regulatory strategy

Communication skills

Independent work

Cross-functional collaboration

Regulatory risk assessment

Education

J.D. degree (or foreign equivalent)

Job description

Who We Are:

Alpaca is a US-headquartered, global leader in agent-first brokerage infrastructure for stocks, ETFs, options, crypto, fixed income, 24/5 trading, and more. Amongst our subsidiaries, Alpaca is a licensed financial services company, serving hundreds of financial institutions across 40 countries with our institutional-grade APIs. This includes broker-dealers, investment advisors, wealth managers, hedge funds, and crypto exchanges, totalling over 10 million brokerage accounts. Our global team is a diverse group of experienced engineers, traders, and brokerage professionals who are working to achieve our mission of opening financial services to everyone on the planet. We're deeply committed to open-source contributions and fostering a vibrant community, continuously enhancing our award-winning, developer-friendly API and the robust infrastructure behind it. Alpaca is proudly backed by $400 million in funding from top-tier global investors including Portage Ventures, Spark Capital, Tribe Capital, Social Leverage, Horizons Ventures, Opera Tech Ventures, SBI Group, Derayah Financial, Unbound, Peak XV, Elefund, and Y Combinator.

Our Team Members:

We’re a dynamic team of 400+ globally distributed members who thrive working from our favorite places around the world, with teammates spanning the USA, Canada, Japan, Hungary, Nigeria, Brazil, the UK, and beyond! We're searching for passionate individuals eager to contribute to Alpaca's rapid growth. If you align with our core values—Stay Curious, Have Empathy, and Be Accountable—and are ready to make a significant impact, we encourage you to apply.

Your Role:

As Legal Counsel, you’ll help Alpaca navigate complex regulatory frameworks as we design and launch innovative financial products and services. You’ll provide practical, business-oriented legal guidance across U.S. broker-dealer regulation, digital assets, payments, and other evolving areas of financial services. You’ll partner closely with teams across Product, Brokerage, Crypto, Compliance, AML, Sales, and Success, supporting everything from product and regulatory reviews to agreements, policies, regulatory engagement, and disputes. This is a highly cross‑functional role with the opportunity to help shape how Alpaca scales in a fast‑moving regulatory environment.

Job Responsibilities

• Navigate complex regulatory frameworks to help the business design and implement innovative financial products and services.
• Lead legal reviews of product design, marketing, and customer onboarding processes to ensure compliance with applicable regulations while enabling business growth.
• Support other areas of the business, such as digital assets, payments, and data privacy, as needed.
• Advise on the application of new or anticipated legal requirements and regulatory guidance to the firm’s systems, policies, and procedures.
• Monitor regulatory developments at relevant governmental agencies and self‑regulatory organizations, including the SEC, FINRA, CFTC, FinCEN, and OFAC.
• Support the company’s engagement with regulators, including the SEC, FINRA, and other agencies.
• Draft agreements, disclosures, policies, and procedures.
• Conduct legal research and analysis on novel questions and provide clear, practical guidance to internal stakeholders.
• Manage litigation, arbitration, and other disputes, including developing case strategy, coordinating with outside counsel, responding to claims and discovery, and advising the business on risk and resolution options.
• Partner cross‑functionally with teams outside of Legal, including the firm’s Product, Brokerage, Crypto, Compliance, Anti‑Money Laundering, Sales, and Success functions.

Required Qualifications and Experience

• J.D. degree (or foreign equivalent) and active membership in at least one U.S. state bar.
• 5-7+ years of legal experience, with at least 3 years focused on U.S. broker-dealer regulation, including the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, regulations and rules thereunder, FINRA rules, and other federal and state securities laws.
• Familiarity with U.S. cryptoasset regulatory regimes, including the SEC, CFTC, NYDFS, FinCEN, and AML requirements.
• Strong experience advising fintechs or financial institutions, ideally in a startup or growth‑stage environment.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver strategic, business‑oriented legal advice under tight deadlines.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and a practical, collaborative working style.
• Strong judgment, self‑motivation, and the ability to work independently and manage multiple projects.
• Comfort with ambiguity and a growth mindset in a fast‑scaling company.

How We Take Care of You:

• Competitive Salary & Stock Options
• Health Benefits
• New Hire Home‑Office Setup: One‑time USD $500
• Monthly Stipend: USD $150 per month via a Brex Card

Alpaca is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace dedicated to pursuing and hiring a diverse workforce.