Sr. Counsel, Digital Assets

About the role

We are seeking an experienced Sr. Product Counsel to serve as a trusted advisor to help shape the future of payments. This role serves as the go-to subject matter expert responsible for advising the business on cutting-edge, innovative and first-of-their-kind payment solutions.

Responsibilities

• Serve as first-line legal counsel to the product team on all legal matters arising in the business unit
• Interpret and apply U.S. and international legal and regulatory frameworks and requirements applicable to payments, digital assets, blockchain, bank regulatory, and privacy including the GENIUS Act, the National Bank Act, Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), OFAC/sanctions compliance, EFTA/Reg E, UCC, UDAAP/UDAP, GLBA/Reg. P and evolving stablecoin and digital asset regulations
• Guide business partners in the launch, experimentation, and scaling of innovative cross-border payment and digital asset solutions through commercially pragmatic, risk-calibrated legal guidance
• Advise on evolving stablecoin and digital assets regulations
• Support the Product and Contracts teams in the drafting and negotiation of commercial agreements
• Partner closely with product, compliance, risk, and strategy teams to structure emerging payment, stablecoin, and blockchain solutions within evolving regulatory and network frameworks
• Draft, review and approve clear and concise public facing disclosures, disclaimers, terms of use or other public facing documents pertinent to the products
• Audit and assess legal and regulatory ambiguity and develop practical, innovation-enabling frameworks, policies, and guardrails for new products, corridors, settlement models, and payment rails
• Advises clients both on individual customer contract issues and in designing contract language that supports business objectives
• Advise on cross-border and international payment regulatory considerations, including digital assets, consumer disclosures, sanctions compliance, foreign exchange considerations, and settlement frameworks
• Draft, review and negotiate a variety of complex commercial relationships supporting the business unit objectives, including strategic partner, sales and supplier agreements
• Manage and supervise outside counsel as needed
• May manage and supervise lower-level attorneys and/or other legal personnel
• Assist with corporate governance functions
• Manage and supervise lower-level attorneys and/or other legal personnel
• Assist with corporate governance functions

Requirements

Candidates responding to this posting must independently possess the eligibility to work in the United States, for any employer, at the date of hire. This position is ineligible for employment Visa sponsorship.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor from an accredited law school; admission to Arizona or another State bar
• Eight or more years’ of in-house or corporate counsel experience, with strong background advising financial institutions or financial services companies on compliance with consumer financial services and privacy laws and regulations
• Significant expertise and relevant experience advising financial services industry market participants regarding compliance with anti-money laundering, sanctions, data privacy, and consumer protection regulations including, for example, Bank Secrecy Act, FinCEN guidelines, FATF recommendations, OFAC sanctions, GLBA, CCPA, GDPR, Regulation E, CFPA/UDAAP, and FTC Act
• Demonstrated experience advising on emerging or evolving regulatory frameworks in payments, cross-border money movement, digital assets, blockchain technology, or related financial infrastructure
• Experience supporting innovative or first-to-market financial products or payment systems in fast-evolving and ambiguous regulatory environments
• Strong business and product acumen, including the ability to balance innovation, regulatory risk, operational realities, and strategic business objectives
• Demonstrated ability to make risk-based decisions and develop practical paths forward with imperfect or evolving regulatory guidance
• Ability to understand and be responsive to the business's needs and partner cross-functionally throughout the organization to achieve results while mitigating risk
• Strong presentation skills and excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong interpersonal and collaborative skills to build partnerships and alliances internally and with external partners at all levels of the organization
• Demonstrated ability to make real-time decisions with imperfect information
• Comprehend and communicate complex law and regulation and judicial and regulatory interpretations of law and regulations to internal clients at all levels of the organization
• Organized with ability to prioritize multiple tasks and achieve objectives in a fast-paced environment
• Prior experience effectively managing outside legal resources
• Unyielding commitment to highest professional ethics
• Ability to maintain professional licensing and memberships in appropriate professional organizations

Skills

Strong business and product acumen, including the ability to balance innovation, regulatory risk, operational realities, and strategic business objectives.

Benefits

The Base Pay Scale For This Position In Phoenix, AZ/ Chicago, IL / Washington, DC in USD per year is: $188,000 - $235,000. New York, NY/ San Francisco, CA in USD per year is: $226,000 - $282,000. Additionally, candidates are eligible for a discretionary incentive plan and benefits. This pay scale is subject to change and is not necessarily reflective of actual compensation that may be earned, nor a promise of any specific pay for any specific candidate, which is always dependent on legitimate factors considered at the time of job offer. Early Warning Services takes into consideration a variety of factors when determining a competitive salary offer, including, but not limited to, the job scope, market rates and geographic location of a position, candidate’s education, experience, training, and specialized skills or certification(s) in relation to the job requirements and compared with internal equity (peers).

The business actively supports and reviews wage equity to ensure that pay decisions are not based on gender, race, national origin, or any factor prohibited by law, and as such affirms in policy and practice to support and promote equal employment opportunity and affirmative action, in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and municipal laws. The company also prohibits discrimination on other bases such as medical condition, marital status or any other factor that is irrelevant to the performance of our employees.