Partner Development Manager, Link - Payments Partnerships

Stripe; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 199,000 - 299,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

401(k) plan

Medical, dental, and vision benefits

Wellness stipends

Job summary

Stripe is seeking a Partner Development Manager for Link's payments partnerships. You will own strategy and execution with card networks, issuers, and crypto providers to expand Link's capabilities and improve performance.

Lead commercial negotiations, drive technical integrations, and shape the payments roadmap with internal and external stakeholders. This role demands strong collaboration with Product, Engineering, Legal, Finance, Risk, and leadership teams.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in partnerships, business development, corporate development, or related field.
• 5+ years of experience with card networks, card issuers, digital wallets, or payments infrastructure
• 3+ years of experience negotiating commercial deals with partners
• Strong communication skills across executive levels
• Technical acumen to define requirements for scaling products through partnerships
• Experience sourcing and analyzing new partnership opportunities in greenfield segments
• Ability to operate autonomously in a fast-moving organization

Responsibilities

• Define and execute Link's payments partnership strategy across card networks, card issuers, local payment methods, and crypto and stablecoins
• Negotiate and manage commercial agreements with payment partners that expand Link's acceptance footprint
• Develop understanding of card network rules, tokenization, authentication, and competitive dynamics to inform strategy
• Drive partnerships enabling Link as payments layer for agentic commerce with networks and issuers
• Coordinate with internal teams (product, risk, compliance, engineering, security) to drive partner strategy and roadmap
• Work with Product and Engineering to define requirements and shape Link's payments product roadmap
• Identify stakeholders to champion Stripe and align executive teams
• Identify and analyze new partnership opportunities and make recommendations
• Exhibit an operational mindset with clear vision and tight processes

Skills

Partnerships

Business development

Negotiation

Strategic thinking

Cross-functional collaboration

Job description

About Stripe

Stripe is a financial infrastructure platform for businesses. Millions of companies - from the world’s largest enterprises to the most ambitious startups - use Stripe to accept payments, grow their revenue, and accelerate new business opportunities. Our mission is to increase the GDP of the internet, and we have a staggering amount of work ahead. That means you have an unprecedented opportunity to put the global economy within everyone's reach while doing the most important work of your career.

Who we are

Stripe is a financial infrastructure platform for businesses. Millions of companies - from the world’s largest enterprises to the most ambitious startups - use Stripe to accept payments, grow their revenue, and accelerate new business opportunities. Our mission is to increase the GDP of the internet, and we have a staggering amount of work ahead. That means you have an unprecedented opportunity to put the global economy within everyone's reach while doing the most important work of your career.

About The Team

The Link Partnerships team sources, develops, and manages relationships with the payments ecosystem partners that power Link, Stripe's consumer wallet. Our team drives the growth and utility of Link by building partnerships with card networks, card issuers, local payment methods, crypto providers, and emerging commerce platforms. We execute on high-impact, cross-functional initiatives that expand Link's acceptance, improve performance, and enable new payment experiences—including agentic commerce. These partnerships have a significant impact on Stripe and the products used by millions of our users.

What you’ll do

We're looking for a Partner Development Manager who builds and manages Link's payments partnerships with card networks, card issuers, local payment method providers, and crypto and stablecoin providers. You'll own the strategy and execution of partnerships that expand Link's payment capabilities, improve transaction performance, and position Link as the default payments layer for agentic commerce. You'll negotiate commercial agreements, drive technical integrations, and shape Link's payments roadmap in collaboration with these partners. As part of these efforts, you'll collaborate closely with cross-functional stakeholders, including Product, Engineering, Legal, Finance, Risk, and others. You'll also lead relationship management and partner closely with external partners' executive leadership.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute Link's payments partnership strategy across card networks, card issuers, local payment methods, and crypto and stablecoins
• Negotiate and manage commercial agreements with payment partners that expand Link's acceptance footprint, improve authorization rates, and unlock new payment capabilities
• Develop a deep understanding of the card network and issuer landscape—including scheme rules, tokenization frameworks, authentication protocols, and competitive dynamics—to inform partnership strategy
• Drive partnerships that enable Link to serve as the payments layer for agentic commerce, working with networks and issuers to establish rules, liability frameworks, and technical standards for agent-initiated transactions
• Gather inputs from and coordinate with internal cross-functional stakeholders (including product, risk, compliance, engineering, and security) to drive creation and execution of partner strategy including our global LPM roadmap
• Work closely with Product and Engineering to define requirements and shape Link's payments product roadmap based on partner capabilities and market opportunities
• Identify partner stakeholders who will champion Stripe, educate them about Link's value proposition, and build alignment between Stripe and our partners' executive teams
• Identify and effectively analyze new partnership opportunities, ultimately making recommendations to relevant decision makers and cross-functional stakeholders
• Exhibit an operationally focused mindset, with an ability to lead teams through complex relationship management activities by setting a clear vision and running tight processes

Who you are

We're looking for someone who meets the minimum requirements to be considered for the role. If you meet these requirements, you are encouraged to apply. The preferred qualifications are a bonus, not a requirement. You're a skilled dealmaker and a strategist by nature. You understand how to work closely with Product and Engineering teams and can formulate partner strategies that drive tangible and measurable results. You're energized by the intersection of payments infrastructure and emerging commerce models, and you see the opportunity to define how payments work in an agentic world.

Minimum Requirements

• 10+ years of experience in partnerships, business development, corporate development, or related field
• 5+ years of experience in or working closely with card networks, card issuers, digital wallets, or payments infrastructure providers
• 3+ years of experience negotiating commercial deals with partners, including scaling such deals across multiple partners
• Strong communication skills, in both verbal and written form, and ability to influence stakeholders across a wide variety of functions, including at executive levels
• Technical acumen, especially an ability to understand product strategy and use this understanding to define requirements for scaling products through partnerships
• Experience developing partnership strategies and identifying, sourcing, and analyzing new partnership opportunities in greenfield segments
• Strong agency, can handle ambiguity in a fast-moving organization, and thrives on a high level of autonomy and responsibility

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with card scheme rules, tokenization (network tokens, device tokens), authentication frameworks (3DS, SCA), and issuer-side authorization optimization
• Experience with emerging payment models such as agentic commerce, embedded payments, or programmable payment flows
• Experience building a new partnership category or vertical from zero—defining the strategy, establishing first partnerships, and scaling the program

Hybrid work at Stripe

This role is available either in an office or a remote location (35+ miles or 56+ km from a Stripe office).

In-office expectations

Office-assigned Stripes spend at least 50% of the time in a given month in their local office or with users. This hits a balance between bringing people together for in-person collaboration and learning from each other, while supporting flexibility about how to do this in a way that makes sense for individuals and their teams.

Working remotely at Stripe

A remote location is defined as being 35 miles (56 kilometers) or more from one of our offices. While you would be welcome to come into the office for team/business meetings, on-sites, meet-ups, and events, our expectation is you would regularly work from home rather than a Stripe office. Stripe does not cover the cost of relocating to a remote location. We encourage you to apply for roles that match the location where you currently live or plan to live.

Pay and benefits

The annual US base salary range for this role is $199,400 - $299,000. For sales roles, the range provided is the role’s On Target Earnings ("OTE") range, meaning that the range includes both the sales commissions/sales bonuses target and annual base salary for the role. This salary range may be inclusive of several career levels at Stripe and will be narrowed during the interview process based on a number of factors, including the candidate’s experience, qualifications, and location. Applicants interested in this role and who are not located in the US may request the annual salary range for their location during the interview process.

Additional benefits for this role may include: equity, company bonus or sales commissions/bonuses; 401(k) plan; medical, dental, and vision benefits; and wellness stipends.

We look forward to hearing from you. At Stripe, we're looking for people with passion, grit, and integrity. You're encouraged to apply even if your experience doesn't precisely match the job description. Your skills and passion will stand out—and set you apart—especially if your career has taken some extraordinary twists and turns. At Stripe, we welcome diverse perspectives and people who think rigorously and aren't afraid to challenge assumptions. Join us.