Senior Java Engineer

Mama Money; South Africa; On-site; ZAR 446,400 - 892,800; Full time

Job summary

A fintech startup in South Africa is seeking a Java Developer to maintain and enhance back-end services. The ideal candidate will have at least 5 years of Java experience and a strong understanding of Agile principles. Responsibilities include implementing new features, managing the SDLC, and ensuring code quality. The company fosters a collaborative and supportive environment, aiming to make a real difference for customers while encouraging innovative thinking.

Qualifications

• At least 5 years of experience programming in Java.
• Ability to work collaboratively in an ever-changing environment.
• Commitment to writing simple, easily understandable code.

Responsibilities

• Implementing new processes, tools, and technologies for growth.
• Managing the full SDLC of new features.
• Ensuring code quality through peer reviews and documentation.

Skills

Java programming

Agile methodologies

Team collaboration

Test automation

Code quality focus

Education

BSc Computer Science or equivalent experience

Tools

Jira

Git

AWS

Spring Boot

MariaDB

Job description

Who we are:

Mama Money is a growth stage fintech startup working to help migrant workers in South Africa send money home. Since 2015 we have been providing reliable remittances, at a socially fair price, to those that need it most.

Mama HQ is in beautiful Cape Town, South Africa. We are 150 people strong (and counting) from 19 countries across Africa, Asia, the UK, and Europe. Our culture is built around the well‑being of our team members and making a difference in our communities. “Just be lekker!” personifies our approach to work: we trust the wisdom of our talented and diverse team to do what is best for our customers and get the job done responsibly, without pedantic policies.

We’ve been around since 2015 and have earned a few accolades along the way, made some new friends, and expanded our reach. We've had some great times and some tough times but we continue to focus on helping people rather than maximizing profit.

You’ll be part of a small team responsible for maintaining our existing services, and implementing new services/features using a microservice architecture approach. Your focus will be on our back‑end system that serves as the engine that drives our apps. We utilize a technology stack of Java, Spring, Spring Boot, and MariaDB (RDS), using a range of Amazon Web Services technologies.

From a process perspective, Mama Money has been growing super fast, which means that a big challenge is scaling our development platforms and practises to support concurrent development of features with multiple teams collaborating. Based on this, we are adopting Agile principles using the Scrum framework. You’ll have to have a strong working understanding of Agile and Scrum mechanics, as well as an understanding of the meaning of what they achieve. You’ll participate in all facets of the process, including requirements analysis, creation of stories (we use Jira as our tool of choice), task breakdown, and story point estimates, and join our journey in learning and evolving how we scale up.

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

• Be a part of investigating and implementing new processes, tools, and technologies to help us grow.
• Be involved in the full SDLC of new features.
• Take responsibility for test automation (unit and integration) of new code.
• Help identify and address technical debt in existing codebases.
• Assist with deployment, QA, and support.
• Ensure code quality through peer reviews, documentation, and knowledge sharing.

TECH STACK:

• Languages: Java + Spring Boot Framework
• Database: MariaDB
• AWS Services: API Gateway, Cognito, SQS, SNS, S3
• Versioning and deployment tools: Git, Github, Github Actions, Helm, ArgoCD
• Project tracking and documentation: Jira, Confluence

WHAT SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE YOU SHOULD HAVE:

• At least 5 years’ experience programming in Java
• The ability to work collaboratively in an ever‑changing environment
• A strong commitment to writing simple, easily understandable code
• The ability to implement test coverage that add value

IT WOULD BE IDEAL IF YOU HAVE

• BSc Computer Science, technical tertiary qualification or significant work experience
• Experience working with asynchronous microservice architectures
• Experience designing and implementing, and integrating with REST APIs
• Experience with Cloud services (preferably AWS)

Why Mama?

At Mama Money, we’re not just a company—we’re a movement. Everything we do is driven by one purpose: to make life better for our customers and the communities we serve. Our customers are our heartbeat, and they inspire every step we take.

We’re all about making it easy. No red tape, no hassle. Just simple, seamless experiences that put people first, we’re here to make things easier, faster, and better for you.

We believe in giving it a go—and then giving it another go if we have to! We're a team of doers, dreamers, and innovators who aren't afraid to break the mold. We take bold steps, experiment with fresh ideas, and never stop learning.

At Mama Money, we own it—and we mean it. We take responsibility for our actions, our results, and how we show up every day. No passing the buck here. We approach every challenge with grit, passion, and determination.

Here’s the best part: Mama Money is a place that truly cares. We care about the trust our customers place in us. We care about our amazing team who bring their best every day. And we care about making an impact in the world, doing the right thing no matter what.

When you join Mama Money, you’re joining a community. We’re a passionate, down‑to‑earth crew that works hard and celebrates wins along the way. We take our work seriously, but we don’t forget to have fun while we do it.

So, if you’re ready to make a real difference, take on exciting challenges, and grow in a place where you’re valued and supported, then Mama Money is the place for you. Let’s make an impact—together.

Mama’s values:

1. Making it easier for our customers

2. Give it a go

3. Just own it