Senior Managing Counsel, Regulatory - Crypto & Digital Assets Regulation

Mastercard; Purchase (NY); On-site; USD 239,000 - 383,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive base salary

Medical, dental, vision coverage

401k with company match

Paid time off & parental leave

Job summary

Mastercard is seeking a Senior Managing Counsel, Regulatory to lead regulatory strategy for its digital assets initiatives globally. You will oversee licensing, supervisory engagements, and compliance across multiple jurisdictions, directing a global team of counsel and regulatory professionals.

The role requires deep expertise in digital asset regulation, strong collaboration with product, engineering and business leaders, and an ability to navigate complex multi‑jurisdictional rules to enable

Qualifications

• Experience advising on digital asset regulation
• Experience licensing and supervisory matters
• Knowledge of NYDFS BitLicense or MiCA
• Knowledge of BSA, FinCEN guidance, Travel Rule
• Experience managing multinational regulatory teams

Responsibilities

• Develop global regulatory strategy for Mastercard's digital assets businesses.
• Lead a global team of regulatory counsel and compliance professionals.
• Oversee licensing strategy across NYDFS BitLicense, MiCA, and other regimes.
• Manage regulatory examinations and responses for digital assets entities.
• Provide regulatory guidance on product development and commercial transactions.

Skills

Regulatory counsel

Regulatory strategy

Licensing

Supervisory engagement

Digital assets

FinCEN guidance

Travel Rule

OFAC sanctions

Team leadership

Regulatory examinations

Cross-border collaboration

Product regulatory advice

Education

JD / law degree

Job description

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart, and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

Title And Summary

Senior Managing Counsel, Regulatory

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart, and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

Title And Summary

Senior Managing Counsel, Regulatory

Who is Mastercard?

Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive, digital economy that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions safe, simple, smart, and accessible.

Mastercard's digital assets business spans stablecoin settlement, tokenized deposits, crypto card programs, on/off-ramp services, and regulated digital asset infrastructure. Together, these capabilities enable banks, fintechs, virtual asset service providers, and merchants to move value across traditional and blockchain rails with compliance, speed, and certainty.

Our decency quotient, or DQ, drives our culture and everything we do inside and outside of our company. With connections across more than 210 countries and territories, we are building a sustainable world that unlocks priceless possibilities for all.

Overview

The Global Regulatory team is looking for a Senior Managing Counsel, Regulatory to serve as the lead regulatory counsel for Mastercard's digital assets initiatives globally and oversee the Regulatory workstreams of digital assets M&A integration. This role leads regulatory strategy, licensing, supervisory engagement, and regulatory compliance management across Mastercard's digital assets portfolio. The ideal candidate is a seasoned regulatory attorney with deep expertise in digital asset and payments regulation, a track record of building and scaling regulatory programs in a high-growth environment, and proven success leading global teams through novel licensing and supervisory matters.

Role

In This Position, You Will

• Develop and execute the global regulatory strategy for Mastercard's digital assets businesses, including engagement, advocacy, and positioning with regulators across the US, EU, UK, APAC, and other priority markets.
• Lead a global team of regulatory counsel and regulatory compliance professionals supporting digital asset products and entities, including hiring, coaching, performance management, and team development.
• Serve as the senior regulatory liaison to business, product, and functional leaders for digital asset initiatives.
• Oversee licensing strategy and execution across applicable frameworks, including NYDFS BitLicense, state money transmitter licenses, EU MiCA, and analogous regimes in other jurisdictions.
• Lead supervisory engagement and regulatory examinations for Mastercard's digital assets business, including support of acquired entities in coordination of examinations and examination responses, remediation commitments, and ongoing supervisory reporting.
• Provide regulatory advice on product development and commercial transactions.
• Advise on the application of the Travel Rule (31 CFR 1010 and equivalent regimes), sanctions and AML obligations, consumer protection requirements, market conduct rules, and prudential expectations specific to digital asset activities.
• Drive the design and implementation of compliance management policies and controls calibrated to the operational and technological characteristics of digital asset products, including blockchain analytics, wallet screening, and on-chain monitoring.
• Manage external counsel across multiple jurisdictions; synthesize and translate complex multi-jurisdictional advice into executable guidance for the business.
• Provide periodic reports to senior management on emerging regulatory developments, supervisory trends, and the state of the digital assets regulatory compliance program.
• Identify and manage regulatory change, partnering with product, engineering, and compliance owners to develop creative solutions that meet new requirements without compromising commercial objectives.
• Maintain deep industry knowledge of digital asset regulation, market structure developments, and supervisory priorities, and represent Mastercard in industry working groups and trade association forums.

All About You

• JD from an established and reputable law school; active bar membership in good standing.
• Substantial experience advising on digital asset regulation at a financial institution, virtual asset service provider, payments company, or top-tier law firm.
• Demonstrated experience leading licensing and supervisory matters under at least one of NYDFS BitLicense, MiCA, MAS PSA, or UK FCA cryptoasset registration; broad familiarity across multiple regimes strongly preferred.
• Deep working knowledge of the BSA, FinCEN guidance applicable to convertible virtual currencies, the Travel Rule, OFAC sanctions, and state money transmission frameworks as applied to digital asset activity.
• Experience managing regulatory examinations and supervisory engagements with US and non-US regulators is a must.
• Dynamic leader with experience building and managing a global team, managing executive stakeholders, and gaining buy-in for enabling strategy.
• Proven success operating in a multi-national organization, partnering effectively with product, engineering, compliance, and commercial teams in a fast-moving, technology-driven business.
• Self-starter, motivated to work independently and as an effective team member.
• Demonstrates a proactive, time-sensitive, results-driven approach in carrying out all duties, obligations, and responsibilities.
• Strong analytic capabilities and excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to translate complex regulatory and technical concepts for executive audiences.
• Comfort operating in areas of legal and regulatory ambiguity; willingness to take reasoned positions and stand behind them.

Mastercard is a merit-based, inclusive, equal opportunity employer that considers applicants without regard to gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disabled or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We hire the most qualified candidate for the role. In the US or Canada, if you require accommodations or assistance to complete the online application process or during the recruitment process, please contact [e-mail] and identify the type of accommodation or assistance you are requesting. Do not include any medical or health information in this email. The Reasonable Accommodations team will respond to your email promptly.

Corporate Security Responsibility

All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks comes with an inherent risk to the organization and, therefore, it is expected that every person working for, or on behalf of, Mastercard is responsible for information security and must:

• Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices;
• Ensure the confidentiality of the information being accessed;
• Report any suspected information security violation or breach, and
• Complete all periodic mandatory security trainings in accordance with Mastercard’s guidelines.

Benefits

In line with Mastercard’s total compensation philosophy and assuming that the job will be performed in the US, the successful candidate will be offered a competitive base salary and may be eligible for an annual bonus or commissions depending on the role. The base salary offered may vary depending on multiple factors, including but not limited to location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Mastercard benefits for full time (and certain part time) employees generally include:

• insurance (including medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, disability, life insurance);
• flexible spending account and health savings account;
• paid leaves (including 16 weeks of new parent leave and up to 20 days of bereavement leave);
• 80 hours of Paid Sick and Safe Time, 25 days of vacation time and 5 personal days, pro-rated based on date of hire;
• 10 annual paid U.S. observed holidays;
• 401k with a best-in-class company match;
• deferred compensation for eligible roles;
• fitness reimbursement or on-site fitness facilities;
• eligibility for tuition reimbursement;
• and many more.

Mastercard benefits for interns generally include:

• 56 hours of Paid Sick and Safe Time;
• jury duty leave;
• and on-site fitness facilities in some locations.

Pay Ranges

• New York City, New York: $250,000 - $400,000 USD
• Purchase, New York: $239,000 - $383,000 USD