Senior Security Engineer, Digital Assets

About the role

This is a hands-on engineering role focused on crypto-native security capabilities and digital asset development, including secure wallet technologies, key management, cryptographic protocols, smart contract security, tokenization, custody policy enforcement, and advanced blockchain security solutions.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to the design and implementation of secure wallet solutions, including:
• Multi-Party Computation (MPC)
• Hardware Security Modules (HSMs)
• Cold, warm, and hot wallet architectures
• Custodial vs. non-custodial control models
• Implement distributed key generation and signing workflows that eliminate single points of failure.
• Ensure secure handling of key lifecycle events—generation, storage, usage, rotation, and recovery.
• Work closely with Custody Leads to validate cryptographic assumptions and architectural choices.
• Design and implement security-critical components leveraging:
• Modern cryptographic protocols
• DeFi application security principles
• Cross-chain and blockchain interoperability patterns
• Participate in evaluating and integrating advanced technologies such as:
• Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs)
• Decentralized Identity (DID) frameworks
• Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) architectures (as applicable)
• Ensure cryptographic designs are auditable, explainable, and production-ready.
• Experience with Web3 Security tooling with Slither, Mythril, Foundry Fuzzing
• Experience with common cryptography implementation languages such as C, C++, Rust, Go.
• Build and configure programmable custody policy engines, including:
• Multi-approval and quorum-based workflows
• Spending thresholds and velocity limits
• Role-based access controls and segregation of duties
• Translate risk, compliance, and business rules into deterministic, testable technical policies.
• Ensure policies are observable, enforceable, and version-controlled.
• Work in close partnership with:
• Crypto Custody engineering
• Enterprise Cybersecurity
• Risk and compliance stakeholders
• Identify potential vulnerabilities, failure modes, or misconfigurations early.
• Support security reviews, threat modeling, and architecture assessments.
• Contribute to incident analysis and remediation related to custody or blockchain security events.
• Experience with collaborating with security auditors, ie: Trail of bits, halborn,
• Evaluate and assess blockchain architectures, protocols, and ecosystems for enterprise suitability.
• Design and review smart-contract frameworks and tokenization approaches, including:
• Tokenized securities
• Stablecoins
• Asset representations using ERC-20, ERC-721, ERC-1155 and related standards
• Assess emerging token lifecycle, settlement, and secure on-chain governance models for applicability to Schwab’s business.
• Experience with implementing, and auditing secure, cross-chain bridges and interoperability protocols (e.g., lock-and-mint, burn-and-mint, atomic swaps) to facilitate asset and data movement between networks.
• Leverage GenAI and agentic AI tools to accelerate:
• Threat modeling
• Cryptographic design reviews
• Documentation and validation
• Apply AI to enhance speed and rigor without compromising correctness or security.

Requirements

• 7+ years of software engineering experience with strong focus on security or cryptography.
• Hands-on experience with secure wallet technologies and key management systems (MPC, HSMs, or equivalent).
• Strong understanding of cryptographic primitives, secure protocol design, and distributed systems.
• Experience building systems where security failures have material impact.
• Able to collaborate effectively across engineering, security, and risk teams.

Strongly Preferred

• Experience with crypto custody platforms, digital assets, or blockchain infrastructure.
• Hands-on work with ZKPs, DID frameworks, DeFi protocols, or CBDC-related systems.
• Experience implementing policy-driven transaction controls in high-risk systems.
• Strong security intuition and ability to reason through complex threat models.
• Experience using AI tools to support secure software development.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of software engineering experience with strong focus on security or cryptography.
• Hands-on experience with secure wallet technologies and key management systems (MPC, HSMs, or equivalent).
• Strong understanding of cryptographic primitives, secure protocol design, and distributed systems.
• Experience building systems where security failures have material impact.
• Able to collaborate effectively across engineering, security, and risk teams.

Skills

• Experience with crypto custody platforms, digital assets, or blockchain infrastructure.
• Hands-on work with ZKPs, DID frameworks, DeFi protocols, or CBDC-related systems.
• Experience implementing policy-driven transaction controls in high-risk systems.
• Strong security intuition and ability to reason through complex threat models.
• Experience using AI tools to support secure software development.

Benefits

• 401(k) with company match and Employee stock purchase plan
• Paid time for vacation, volunteering, and 28-day sabbatical after every 5 years of service for eligible positions
• Paid parental leave and family building benefits
• Tuition reimbursement
• Health, dental, and vision insurance