Senior Data Engineer, Data Platform

TRM Labs; United States; On-site; USD 190,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity eligible

Job summary

TRM Labs is seeking a Senior Data Engineer for the Data Platform team to build scalable data services and ETL pipelines handling petabyte-scale blockchain activity. You will design data models for low-latency queries, deploy and monitor large clusters, and collaborate with data scientists, engineers, and product managers to advance TRM’s products.

The role emphasizes architecture, performance, and reliability within a distributed data infra, enabling safer financial systems at scale.

Qualifications

• A Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in Computer Science or a related field.
• A proven track record, with 5+ years of hands-on experience in architecting distributed system architecture, guiding projects from initial ideation through to successful production deployment.
• Exceptional programming skills in Python, as well as adeptness in SQL or SparkSQL.
• In-depth experience with data stores such as Iceberg, Trino, BigQuery, and StarRocks, and Citus.
• Proficiency in data pipeline and workflow orchestration tools like Airflow, DBT, etc.
• Expertise in data processing technologies and streaming workflows including Spark, Kafka, and Flink.
• Competence in deploying and monitoring infrastructure within public cloud platforms, utilizing tools such as Docker, Terraform, Kubernetes, and Datadog.
• Proven ability in loading, querying, and transforming extensive datasets.

Responsibilities

• Build highly reliable data services to integrate with dozens of blockchains.
• Develop complex ETL pipelines that transform and process petabytes of structured and unstructured data in real-time.
• Design and architect intricate data models for optimal storage and retrieval to support sub-second latency for querying blockchain data.
• Oversee the deployment and monitoring of large database clusters with an unwavering focus on performance and high availability.
• Collaborate across departments, partnering with data scientists, backend engineers, and product managers to design and implement novel data models that enhance TRM’s products.

Skills

Distributed systems

Python

SQL

SparkSQL

Iceberg

Trino

BigQuery

StarRocks

Citus

Airflow

DBT

Spark

Kafka

Flink

Docker

Terraform

Kubernetes

Datadog

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science

Tools

Docker

Terraform

Kubernetes

Datadog

Job description

Build a Safer World. TRM Labs provides AI‑powered intelligence solutions that help public and private sector agencies investigate and disrupt crime. TRM's platforms enable investigators to trace illicit activity, build cases, and construct operating pictures of threat networks. Leading agencies and businesses worldwide rely on TRM to make the world safer and more secure. The Data Platform team collaborates with an experienced group of data scientists, engineers, and product managers to build highly available and scalable data infrastructure for TRM's products and services. As a Senior Data Engineer on the Data Platform team, you will be responsible for executing mission‑critical systems and data services that analyze blockchain transaction activity at petabyte scale, and ultimately work to build a safer financial system for billions of people.

The Impact You’ll Have Here

• Build highly reliable data services to integrate with dozens of blockchains.
• Develop complex ETL pipelines that transform and process petabytes of structured and unstructured data in real‑time.
• Design and architect intricate data models for optimal storage and retrieval to support sub‑second latency for querying blockchain data.
• Oversee the deployment and monitoring of large database clusters with an unwavering focus on performance and high availability.
• Collaborate across departments, partnering with data scientists, backend engineers, and product managers to design and implement novel data models that enhance TRM’s products.

What We’re Looking For

• A Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in Computer Science or a related field.
• A proven track record, with 5+ years of hands‑on experience in architecting distributed system architecture, guiding projects from initial ideation through to successful production deployment.
• Exceptional programming skills in Python, as well as adeptness in SQL or SparkSQL.
• Versatility that spans the entire spectrum of data engineering in one or more of the following areas:
  • In‑depth experience with data stores such as Iceberg, Trino, BigQuery, and StarRocks, and Citus.
  • Proficiency in data pipeline and workflow orchestration tools like Airflow, DBT, etc.
  • Expertise in data processing technologies and streaming workflows including Spark, Kafka, and Flink.
  • Competence in deploying and monitoring infrastructure within public cloud platforms, utilizing tools such as Docker, Terraform, Kubernetes, and Datadog.
  • Proven ability in loading, querying, and transforming extensive datasets.

About The Team

• The Data Platform team is the funnel between all of TRM's data world and product world. We care about all layers of stack including petabyte of data stores, pipelines, and processes.
• We have quite a big scope as a the team with new and exciting projects every quarter. As a result, we collaborate across the board with most teams at TRM.
• We believe in async communication and are also not afraid to jump on a quick huddle if that helps to move things faster. We are both scrappy when the situation demands and also process‑oriented when we need to achieve our OKRs.
• We are always looking for people who can elevate the quality our tech and our execution. If you enjoy a remote‑first and async friendly environment to achieve efficacy and efficiency at petabyte scale, our team could be a great pick for you!
• Team members are based in the US across almost all timezones!
• We do try to reserve some overlap in the day for meetings. Our north star - no IC spends more than 3‑4 hours/week in meetings.

Learn About TRM Speed In This Position

• Build scalable engines to optimize routine scaling and maintenance tasks like create self‑serve automation for creating new pgbouncer, scaling disks, scaling/updating of clusters, etc.
• Enable tasks to be faster next time and reducing dependency on a single person.
• Identify ways to compress timelines using 80/20 principle. For instance, what does it take to be operational in a new environment? Identify the must have and nice to haves that are need to deploy our stack to be fully operation. Focus on must haves first to get us operational and then use future milestones to harden for customer readiness. We think in terms of weeks and not months.
• Identify first version, a.k.a., "skateboards" for projects. For instance, build an observability dashboard within a week. Gather feedback from stakeholders after to identify more needs or bells and whistles to add to the dashboard.

About TRM's Engineering Levels

Engineer: Responsible for helping to define project milestones and executing small decisions independently with the appropriate tradeoffs between simplicity, readability, and performance. Provides mentorship to junior engineers, and enhances operational excellence through tech debt reduction and knowledge sharing.

Senior Engineer: Successfully designs and documents system improvements and features for an OKR/project from the ground up. Consistently delivers efficient and reusable systems, optimizes team throughput with appropriate tradeoffs, mentors team members, and enhances cross‑team collaboration through documentation and knowledge sharing.

Staff Engineer: Drives scoping and execution of one or more OKRs/projects that impact multiple teams. Partners with stakeholders to set the team vision and technical roadmaps for one or more products. Is a role model and mentor to the entire engineering organization. Ensures system health and quality with operational reviews, testing strategies, and monitoring rigor.

• Individual pay is determined by skills, qualifications, experience, and location. The compensation details listed in this posting reflect the US base salary only.
• The estimated base salary range for this role is $190,000 - $220,000.
• Additionally, this role may be eligible to participate in TRM’s equity plan.
• Please note – we factor in the different costs for geographies outside the United States.

Life at TRM

We are building a safer world. That promise shows up in how we work every day.

TRM moves quickly. We are a high velocity, high ownership team that expects clarity, follow‑through, and impact. People who thrive here are energized by hard problems, experimentation, and continuous feedback. If something takes months elsewhere, it will ship here in days.

Our work sits at the intersection of AI, national security, and fighting crime. The problems are complex, the stakes are real, and the environment evolves quickly. The pace and intensity of the work reflect the importance of the mission. As a result, the way we operate requires a high level of ownership, adaptability, collaboration, and creative problem‑solving.

At TRM, You Should Expect

• Priorities and targets to change quickly as we experiment and iterate
• Work that often requires operating with a high degree of ambiguity
• A high level of personal ownership and accountability
• Close collaboration across teams and functions
• Frequent, high‑touch communication
• Creative problem solving and out-of-the-box thinking
• A pace that rewards urgency, adaptability, and outcomes

AI Fluency at TRM

AI fluency is a baseline expectation at TRM.

We believe AI meaningfully changes how top performers operate. We expect every team member to use AI to accelerate and reimagine their craft, not just automate surface tasks.

At TRM, AI Fluency Means You Are Among The Top 10 Percent Of Operators In Your Function In How You Apply AI To

• Accelerate repeatable workflows
• Structure and solve problems
• Improve output quality
• Increase speed and leverage

You will be evaluated on applied AI fluency during the interview process.

Leadership Principles

We hire and grow against three leadership principles. They’re the standards for how we operate, treat each other, and make decisions.

• Impact‑Oriented Trailblazer: We put customers first and move with speed, focus, and adaptability. We treat every plan like an experiment – test, ship, measure, and iterate quickly.
• Master Craftsperson: We care deeply about our craft. We balance speed with high standards, own outcomes end‑to‑end, and invest in getting better everyday.
• Inspiring Colleague: We add clarity and energy, not noise. We bring humility, candor, and a one‑team mindset — giving and receiving feedback to make the team stronger.

Join our Mission

At TRM we care deeply about our craft. We are looking for individuals who want their work to matter, who experiment with speed and rigor, and who take pride in building a safer world for billions of people. If you’re excited by TRM’s mission but don’t check every box, we encourage you to apply — we hire for slope, judgment, and the will to learn fast.

TRM is a Series C company with $220M in total funding, backed by Goldman Sachs, Bessemer, Y Co, Thoma Bravo, and others. Headquartered in San Francisco, TRM operates as a distributed‑first company with hubs in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Washington D.C., London, and Singapore.

Privacy Policy And Additional Information

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We collect the information you provide (such as your resume, work history, and contact details) solely for the purpose of evaluating your candidacy for current and future roles at TRM.

Because our hiring cycles for certain positions may span 24 to 36 months, we retain your personal information for up to 36 months from the date of your application. After that period, your data is deleted unless a different retention period is required or permitted by law.

If you are located in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or another jurisdiction with applicable data protection laws, you have the right to access, correct, or request deletion of your personal data at any time before that period ends. To exercise any of these rights, contact us at [e-mail].

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