Head of Protocol

This role is a full-time engagement directly with the client. Fully remote. USA. The MissionShape the future of decentralized finance by leading the core technical architecture, execution, and operating standards for a foundational smart contract and protocol stack. Reporting directly to the CTO, you will own the technical roadmap for a major lending and borrowing protocol, ensuring that security and execution quality are never compromised as we build the next generation of modular DeFi infrastructure. The RoleAs a leader, you will move comfortably between system design, smart contract implementation, security analysis, engineering management, and high-stakes product decisions. You will spend your time leading from the front: setting architectural direction, reviewing critical code, making difficult tradeoffs, and developing exceptional engineers.Architecture & Protocol Design (40%): Own the technical architecture for the protocol roadmap from design to mainnet deployment. Lead the design of modular lending/borrowing infrastructure, including liquidity architecture, collateral systems, market configurations, liquidations, and governance controls.Team Leadership & Engineering Standards (30%): Build, lead, and develop a world-class protocol engineering team. Establish rigorous engineering standards for smart-contract development, testing, code review, audit engagements, and operational readiness.Hands-on Security & Execution (20%): Remain hands-on in critical architecture reviews, key code paths, security decisions, audit remediation, and major protocol releases. Lead incident readiness, emergency controls, and response processes.Ecosystem & Governance Representation (10%): Serve as the senior technical counterpart to external auditors, infrastructure partners, and ecosystem contributors. Represent Protocol Engineering in governance forums, community calls, and technical AMAs. The Must-HavesDeFi & Smart Contract Mastery: Extensive production experience designing, deploying, and maintaining high-stakes, secure smart contracts at scale.Architectural Vision: Proven capability defining clear boundaries between onchain and offchain systems—expertly balancing decentralization, security, gas costs, performance, and operational flexibility.Engineering Leadership: Experience building, scaling, and managing high-performing protocol engineering teams, with a track record of developing senior engineering talent.Embedded Security Rigor: A security-first mindset with deep experience modeling economic/technical failure scenarios, managing external audits, and executing disciplined protocol upgrades.Directed AI-Assisted Development: Experience establishing practical guardrails for the responsible use of AI-assisted development tools, ensuring speed gains never replace independent technical judgment, formal verification, or absolute code ownership.Location: Full-Time Employment (FTE), US-based (Remote). The Bonus SkillsProtocol Ecosystem Deep-Dive: Familiarity with major DeFi protocol stacks, lending/borrowing primitives, architecture history, and DAO governance mechanisms.Formal Verification: Practical experience implementing formal verification frameworks or advanced mathematical modeling for smart contract invariants.Advanced Cryptography: Exposure to or working knowledge of cutting-edge zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) or MEV mitigation strategies. Personal TraitsHigh Accountability & Ownership: You act as a primary steward of the protocol, taking full accountability for systemic health, security, and long-term maintainability.Rigor Under Pressure: You hold an uncompromising bar for quality and security, resisting the pressure to cut corners or rush deployments in a fast-moving market.Strategic & Collaborative: You are an excellent partner to product, risk, and executive leadership, translating complex technical trade-offs into clear, strategic decisions.Credible Communicator: You communicate clearly and with high technical authority to governance participants, developers, integrators, and security researchers alike.Continuous Improvement Mentor: You take pride in raising the collective bar of your team, fostering a culture of direct communication, thorough documentation, and relentless learning.