Chief Legal Officer (CLO) ($1M-$5M salary)

SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITIES

• Regulatory Affairs & Digital Asset Compliance
• Serve as the primary internal expert on US digital asset regulation — SEC, CFTC, FinCEN, OFAC — providing timely, well-reasoned guidance across product, engineering, and commercial teams.
• Own and manage the company's global regulatory posture across UK (FCA), EU (MiCA/DORA), and APAC jurisdictions; identify exposure and develop defensible compliance frameworks.
• Lead regulatory engagement: respond to inquiries, manage investigations, and represent the company in proceedings alongside outside counsel.
• Monitor legislative and regulatory developments across all relevant jurisdictions and translate them into actionable recommendations for senior leadership.
• Oversee AML/KYC programme integrity in collaboration with the Head of Compliance, ensuring frameworks are robust, current, and audit-ready.
• Product & Commercial Counsel
• Provide timely legal review for all product launches, feature expansions, and go-to-market activities across multiple jurisdictions.
• Draft, negotiate, and manage all commercial contracts: partnerships, exchange listings, data and API agreements, vendor relationships, and enterprise arrangements.
• Advises on data privacy obligations (GDPR, CCPA) and consumer protection requirements embedded in product design and terms of service.
• Review marketing and promotional materials for regulatory compliance across relevant markets.
• Corporate Governance & Litigation
• Advise on corporate governance and board matters across the UK parent entity and any US or international subsidiaries.
• Lead the company's response to litigation, class actions, and law enforcement requests; manage outside counsel relationships effectively, controlling quality and cost.
• Oversee IP strategy including trademark registration, brand protection, and global enforcement.
• Manage cross-border corporate structuring matters as the company's legal footprint evolves.
• Legal Operations & Team Building
• Identify emerging legal risks before they become existential; build scalable internal processes that the business can actually use.
• Manage and develop outside counsel panel relationships — driving quality up and costs down.
• Contribute to building a world-class legal function appropriate to the company's scale and ambition.

CANDIDATE PROFILE

• Qualifications & Experience
• JD from an accredited US law school; admitted to the New York Bar or eligible for admission on motion.
• Additional UK or international qualifications are a plus.
• 10+ years of legal experience, combining top-tier law firm practice with meaningful in-house time in crypto, fintech, payments, or regulated financial services.
• Deep, practitioner-level knowledge of US digital asset regulation — you understand the current state of SEC/CFTC jurisdiction, FinCEN expectations, and OFAC sanctions compliance.
• Genuine familiarity with international regulatory frameworks: UK FCA, EU MiCA, FATF standards, and at least one APAC regime.
• Experience with GDPR/CCPA, AML/sanctions compliance, and consumer protection regulation is expected.
• Attributes
• Commercially sharp — you give clear, actionable advice that enables the business to move forward, not opinions that generate more questions than answers.
• Comfortable in genuine ambiguity — crypto law is unsettled and evolving; you make well-reasoned calls without waiting for certainty that will not come.
• High-agency and direct — you own your work end-to-end and communicate clearly to non-lawyers at every level of the organisation.
• Startup or high-growth company experience strongly preferred — you know how to do a great deal with a lean team.
• Absolute discretion — the matters you will handle are sensitive; confidentiality is non-negotiable.