Senior Counsel - Product (UK & EU)

As Senior Counsel - Product at Kraken (Payward), you join the Consumer Legal team, embedded with Product, Design, and Engineering to ship novel consumer products including crypto trading, earn, payments, on-chain integrations, equities, and tokenised equities. You report to the Head of Consumer Legal and work shoulder-to-shoulder with product teams to shape and launch cutting-edge consumer experiences. This is a fully remote role for a qualified solicitor in the UK or admitted in an EU jurisdiction.

What you'll do

• Partner with Product, Design, and Engineering teams to provide legal counsel on cutting-edge consumer products spanning crypto trading, earn, payments, on-chain integrations, equities, and tokenised equities
• Distil complex legal and regulatory issues into clear, actionable guidance for non-lawyers and product stakeholders
• Advise on regulated investment services (MiFID) and crypto-asset regimes including MiCA, AMLD5, UK financial promotions, and e-money regulations
• Chart clear, defensible paths to product launch by applying a pragmatic, commercially accountable approach to legal and regulatory risk
• Provide stakeholders with a useful range of options and deliver clear recommendations to decision-makers

What you bring

• Qualified as a Solicitor of England and Wales, Irish Solicitor, or equivalent admitted in an EU Member State
• 5+ years' post-qualification experience in financial services law gained at a regulated financial services firm, crypto services provider, or private practice, ideally with direct product counselling experience
• Experience advising on regulated MiFID investment services and familiarity with relevant crypto-asset regimes, including MiCA, AMLD5, UK financial promotions, and e-money regulations
• Outstanding analytical, drafting, and organisational skills with crisp, plain-English writing
• Ability to efficiently and confidently distil complex legal and regulatory issues into clear, actionable guidance for non-lawyers and product stakeholders
• Pragmatic, commercially accountable approach to legal and regulatory risk that prioritises providing stakeholders with a useful range of options
• Authentic passion for crypto and familiarity with the features of Kraken and its competitors' apps and products

Nice to have

• Expertise in the MiCA framework applicable to crypto asset service providers, including brokerage, custody, and operation of trading platforms
• Expertise in the UK crypto-asset financial promotions regime and proposals for the incoming authorisation regime for regulating crypto asset service providers
• Expertise in MiFID frameworks applicable to investment services including derivatives, equities, funds, and emerging tokenised financial instruments
• Familiarity with using AI tools such as Enterprise GPTs to increase efficient provision of legal services and create custom GPTs for stakeholder self-service on legal and regulatory queries

About Kraken (Payward)

Kraken is one of the world's longest-standing crypto platforms, founded in 2011 and trusted by over 10 million individuals and institutions globally. It offers spot trading, margin, futures, staking, and OTC services. Payward, the parent company, has spent 15 years building a modern and globally accessible financial infrastructure platform that advances an open, global financial system.