Senior Internal Auditor, Technology

As a Senior Internal Auditor, Technology at Payward (the parent company of Kraken), you'll execute the technology audit program and evaluate the design and operating effectiveness of controls across a broad IT environment spanning cybersecurity, identity and access management, the software development lifecycle, data and privacy, operational resilience, and AI. You'll have real ownership over scope, stakeholders, and outcomes, shaping how safely Payward manages some of its highest risks. Working at a crypto exchange where infrastructure spans blockchain-native systems and digital asset custody, you'll ensure controls are right as deployment cycles move fast and client trust depends on it.

What you'll do

• Plan and execute technology audits across a broad IT environment, including cybersecurity, cloud, identity and access management, and the software development lifecycle and change management
• Assess the security of core systems holding sensitive customer records and identity documentation, evaluating access controls, data protection, monitoring, and regulatory and policy compliance
• Assess operational resilience (business continuity, disaster recovery, and resilience testing), incident management, technology risk management, and third-party technology oversight
• Review data governance, privacy, and data-lake controls, and assess AI governance, security, and privacy across the organization's use of AI and machine-learning systems
• Test the design and operating effectiveness of IT general controls and application controls against frameworks such as ISO 27001, NIST CSF, SOC 2, or COBIT, identifying gaps, performing root cause analysis, and assessing business and financial-reporting impact
• Apply AI-enabled workflows, including AI-assisted testing, anomaly detection, and analytics, to expand coverage and efficiency with human ownership of conclusions
• Lead multiple audit engagements concurrently, managing planning, fieldwork, and reporting end-to-end
• Document audit findings, including control gaps and root cause, and draft clear, well-supported workpapers and reports
• Track and validate remediation of identified issues, escalating delays or gaps to Internal Audit leadership
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of audit methodologies and frameworks, ensuring conformance with the IIA Global Internal Audit Standards and the function's quality assurance requirements
• Lead engagement teams, including staffing and coordinating co-sourced specialists, to ensure quality and timely delivery across audits
• Serve as a trusted point of contact for control owners across Engineering, Infrastructure, and Security teams to communicate audit results and advise on control improvements while maintaining audit independence
• Translate technical findings into clear, actionable conclusions for non-technical stakeholders and senior leadership
• Partner with other Internal Audit team members and co-sourced resources to ensure coordinated coverage across the audit plan

What you bring

• 5-8 years in IT audit, information security, or a related technology risk function, ideally within financial services, fintech, or crypto
• Broad IT audit experience across several of: cybersecurity, identity and access management, ITGCs, cloud, SDLC and change management, data and privacy, operational resilience, and third-party technology risk
• A strong grasp of control frameworks (ISO 27001, NIST CSF, SOC 2, or COBIT) and cloud environments (AWS, GCP, Azure)
• Working knowledge of data governance and privacy (for example, GDPR), with exposure to AI governance, security, and privacy
• Technical fluency with enterprise technology (systems, databases, deployment pipelines) and the ability to translate findings clearly for engineers and senior leaders alike
• The ability to apply generative AI responsibly, with human oversight, to improve testing coverage and efficiency

Nice to have

• Relevant certifications: CISA, CISSP, CRISC, CIA, or equivalent
• Familiarity with blockchain infrastructure, digital asset custody, or crypto-native technology environments
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines, version control, and modern deployment practices
• Exposure to operational resilience and ISO 27001 certification environments

About Payward

Payward, the parent company behind Kraken, NinjaTrader, Breakout, xStocks, Payward Services and CF Benchmarks, has spent 15 years building one of the most modern and globally accessible financial infrastructure platforms in the industry. Kraken, founded in 2011, is one of the world's longest-standing crypto platforms, trusted by over 10 million individuals and institutions, offering spot trading, margin, futures, staking, and OTC services for both individual investors and institutional clients.