Senior Java Application Architect

Cloudsmiths; Gauteng; Remote; ZAR 800 000 - 1 000 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading technology company in South Africa is seeking a Senior Java Application Architect to lead the design and development of a payment gateway with a focus on security and compliance. This role involves utilizing technologies such as Java, Spring, and GCP to architect solutions for both local and international markets. The ideal candidate will have over 8 years of experience in Java engineering and significant involvement in payment gateway systems. This is a high-impact position requiring a deep understanding of compliance standards and operational observability.

Qualifications

• 8–10+ years in Java engineering with 3–5+ years as an Application / Domain Architect in payments or fintech.
• Experience building or evolving a payment gateway or acquiring platform.
• Proven production experience on GCP.

Responsibilities

• Lead the planning, architecture, design, and development of a payment gateway.
• Architect a PCI-aligned, low-latency payment gateway on GCP.
• Deliver production integrations with external providers.

Skills

Java 17+

Spring Boot / Spring Cloud

JPA / Hibernate

OAuth2 / OIDC

Cloud Run

Terraform (IaC)

Tools

Cloud SQL (MySQL / Postgres)

BigQuery

CI / CD (Cloud Build / GitHub Actions)

Job description

Overview

We are looking for a hands-on Senior Java Application Architect to lead the planning, architecture, design, and development of a payment gateway.

This is a high-impact role where you will build a solution on Google Cloud (GCP) designated for rollout across Africa and international markets. You will own the end-to-end architecture with a strong emphasis on security, compliance (PCI, POPIA / GDPR), and operational observability.

Key Outcomes You Will Drive

• Architect a PCI-aligned, low-latency payment gateway on GCP with clear SLIs / SLOs
• Deliver production integrations with external providers, including mobile-money services (e.g., Tigo Pesa, M-Pesa, Airtel Money) and MNO / banking APIs
• Design scalable microservices ready for multi-region expansion (ZA / EU / UK) with robust reconciliation, idempotency, and retries
• Embed PCI DSS controls, tokenization, and key management while preparing for PSD2 / UK requirement

The Tech Stack

• You must have production experience with the following technologies: Java 17+, Spring Boot / Spring Cloud, JPA / Hibernate (Reactive / WebFlux is a plus)
• OAuth2 / OIDC, mTLS, HMAC, API policy enforcement
• Cloud Run (Primary Runtime) and / or GKE Autopilot
• Cloud SQL (MySQL / Postgres), AlloyDB, Memorystore (Redis), BigQuery
• Pub / Sub, Dataflow, CI / CD (Cloud Build / GitHub Actions), Terraform (IaC)

Who We Are Looking For

• 8–10+ years in Java engineering with 3–5+ years as an Application / Domain Architect in payments or fintech.
• You have built or significantly evolved a payment gateway, acquiring platform, or wallet / PSP system.
• Experience with wallet / mobile money flows (e.g., M-Pesa, Tigo Pesa) regarding KYC, float, and settlement is strongly preferred.
• Proven production experience on GCP.
• Deep understanding of high-availability, traffic shaping, circuit breakers, saga / outbox patterns, and event-driven systems.