Senior Java Developer - EMV Kernel & Payments Expert

PBT Group; Stellenbosch; On-site; ZAR 700,000 - 1,100,000; Full time

Job summary

PBT Group is seeking an experienced Java Developer with hands-on EMV Kernel and payments domain experience for a contract engagement based in Cape Town.

The role sits within a major banking environment and requires someone who combines strong Java engineering skills with deep knowledge of the payments stack—from card-present transaction processing through to EMV kernel integration, certification, and infrastructure.

Qualifications

• 5–8 years’ hands-on Java development experience with strong OOP fundamentals and design patterns.
• Experience in a payments, fintech, or banking engineering environment.
• Familiarity with payment processing concepts – authorisation flows, settlement, reconciliation, ISO 8583 or ISO 20022 messaging.
• Ability to read, understand, and work with complex integration specifications and payment scheme documentation.
• Experience with REST and/or SOAP web services and API integration.
• Solid understanding of secure coding practices relevant to financial systems (cryptography, key management, TLS/SSL).
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines and version control (Git, Bitbucket, Jenkins, or equivalent).
• Strong debugging and problem-solving skills – comfortable diagnosing issues at the infrastructure and application layer.

Responsibilities

• Develop, maintain, and enhance Java-based components within the payments processing stack.
• Work on EMV Kernel integration and transaction processing logic across chip-based and contactless payment flows.
• Build and maintain integrations between payment terminals, POS/ATM devices, and core banking systems.
• Implement and maintain transaction processing workflows including FNOL, authorisation, settlement, and reconciliation.
• Contribute to EMV certification processes and compliance with EMVCo, Visa, Mastercard, and local payment scheme requirements.
• Debug and resolve complex issues across the payments stack, including terminal-level and kernel-level transaction failures.
• Write clean, well-tested Java code with appropriate unit and integration tests.
• Collaborate with payments domain specialists, infrastructure engineers, and business stakeholders.
• Contribute to technical documentation covering payment flows, integration specs, and architecture decisions.
• Proactively upskill on infrastructure components and payment stack layers not directly within your immediate experience

Skills

Java development

Payments domain

API integration

Secure coding

CI/CD

Debugging

Tools

Git

Bitbucket

Jenkins

Job description

PBT Group is seeking an experienced Java Developer with hands-on EMV Kernel and payments domain experience for a contract engagement based in Cape Town.

The role sits within a major banking environment and requires someone who combines strong Java engineering skills with deep knowledge of the payments stack—from card-present transaction processing through to EMV kernel integration, certification, and infrastructure.