Building the Future of Crypto Our Krakenites are a world-class team with crypto conviction, united by our desire to discover and unlock the potential of crypto and blockchain technology.What makes us different? Kraken is a mission-focused company rooted in crypto values. As a Krakenite, you ll join us on our mission to accelerate the global adoption of crypto, so that everyone can achieve financial freedom and inclusion. For over a decade, Kraken s focus on our mission and crypto ethos has attracted many of the most talented crypto experts in the world.Before you apply, please read the Kraken Culture page to learn more about our internal culture, values, and mission. We also expect candidates to familiarize themselves with the Kraken app. Learn how to create a Kraken account here.As a fully remote company, we have Krakenites in 70+ countries who speak over 50 languages. Krakenites are industry pioneers who develop premium crypto products for experienced traders, institutions, and newcomers to the space. Kraken is committed to industry-leading security, crypto education, and world-class client support through our products like Kraken Pro, Desktop, Wallet, and Kraken Futures.Become a Krakenite and build the future of crypto!Proof of workThe teamPayward is seeking a Head of Global Capital Markets Compliance to lead the governance, oversight, and integrity of trading and market activities across its global exchange, broker, and capital markets operations spanning securities and crypto markets. The position offers the opportunity to shape the evolution of global digital asset market structure and capital markets infrastructure within a rapidly developing regulatory landscape.The role reports to the Global Chief Compliance Officer, with responsibility for providing clear oversight, escalation, and subject matter leadership across trading and market integrity globally.This role has primary responsibility for regulated entities and trading venue obligations, while operating with a global remit across the U.S., EU, Asia, LATAM, Canada, emerging markets, and other international jurisdictions.You will act as a trusted advisor and strategic partner to senior leadership, playing an integral role in shaping Payward s global trading, market structure, and capital markets strategy. This is a senior, accountable second-line leadership role, responsible for ensuring robust regulatory alignment while enabling business growth and expansion.This person will ensure the capital markets compliance program remains risk-based, scalable, and defensible across all jurisdictions in which Payward operates. The position works closely with Regional Compliance Officers, Legal, product and engineering teams, and operational stakeholders to ensure frameworks are operationally executable and aligned with evolving regulatory expectations.The right person must be a “systems thinker” who deploys technology solutions including automation of everything possible consistent with regulatory requirements to scale the capital markets Compliance program as a risk based, operationally effective, data driven machine.This is suited to a high-caliber compliance leader with deep expertise in market structure and trading regulation, capable of operating at the intersection of regulation, product, and global business strategy in a fast moving environment.The opportunityLead the design and integration of a firmwide markets compliance framework, developing and maintaining a comprehensive understanding of the firm s evolving capital markets ecosystem, including the interdependencies between trading venues, liquidity provision, custody, and listings, and ensuring a consistent, auditable approach to market structure, conflicts of interest, and market integrity across products, entities, and jurisdictions.Global Capital Markets Compliance LeadershipOwn compliance coverage across global capital markets activities, including:Trading venues and exchange operationsBroker and OTC tradingOTC DerivativesSpot markets (digital assets and securities)Tokenization and digital securitiesListings and issuer-related processesProvide strategic oversight of market structure, trading conduct, and capital markets frameworksAct as compliance lead supporting trading venue development, including alignment with FCA expectations for MTFs and similar market infrastructuresLead and develop a global Markets Compliance team, providing direction, oversight, and prioritization across regional and functional coveragePartner closely with Enterprise Risk and Market Risk functions to ensure integrated oversight of market, liquidity, and conduct risks across the firm.Strategic Advisory & Business PartnershipAct as a trusted advisor to leadership on trading, market structure, and capital markets strategyProvide commercially aligned guidance to support product innovation and global expansionPlay a key role in business structuring decisions, including entity design, operating models, and jurisdictional expansionEnsure regulatory considerations are embedded in strategic planning, product development, and market expansionEntity-Level Governance & Regulatory OversightLead and oversee entity-level compliance frameworks across regulated entitiesEnsure appropriate governance, escalation, and control frameworks for trading and market conductProvide independent second-line challenge to trading and capital markets activitiesManage regulators including CBI, FCA, SEC, CFTC, and other global authoritiesEnsure appropriate compliance resourcing and expertise supporting regulated activitiesMarket Integrity & Surveillance OversightOversee market abuse and trading conduct risk global frameworks including:Market manipulationInsider tradingSpoofing and layeringWash tradingConflicts of interestEnsure surveillance and monitoring frameworks remain aligned with evolving regulatory expectationsOversee continued enhancement of surveillance governance and regulatory reporting frameworks, including emerging European requirementsReview thematic trends and surveillance outputs to drive control improvements and risk identificationMaintain oversight of escalation and governance processes relating to market abuseRegulatory Frameworks & Global CoverageEnsure compliance across key regimes, including:Europe / UK: MiFID II / MAR (market conduct and surveillance), MiCA (market abuse in crypto-assets). FCA trading venue frameworks (including MTF expectations), Engagement with Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) and FCAUnited States: SEC, CFTC, NFAGlobal: VARA (UAE), MAS (Singapore), BMA / DABA (Bermuda), CIRO / UMIR (Canada)Support expansion into emerging markets, ensuring scalable and consistent compliance frameworksProduct, Listings & Market DevelopmentLead compliance input into:New trading products and market structuresTokenization and digital securitiesListings and issuer frameworksEnsure market integrity, disclosure, and regulatory controls are embedded from inceptionConflicts of Interest, Information Barriers, Internal InvestigationsManage conflicts of interest globally including vendor solutionsOversee and maintain information barriers including wall crossing proceduresLead internal investigations working closely with Employee RelationsSkills you should HODL10+ years in markets, trading, or capital markets complianceSenior leadership roles within exchanges, broker-dealers, or trading platformsDeep expertise in MiCA, MiFID II / MAR, FCA trading venue / MTF frameworksStrong working knowledge of SEC / CFTC / NFA & global regulatory environments across APAC, Middle East, and emerging marketsStrong understanding of order book dynamics, trading mechanics, market microstructure, capital markets lifecycle (including listings), information barriers to manage price sensitive informationFamiliarity with surveillance technologies and data-driven monitoring frameworksProven ability to lead global compliance programsAbility to operate as a senior advisor and influence executive stakeholdersExperience managing complex, multi-jurisdictional regulatory environmentsStrong background in:Trading venues/market infrastructureMarket structureMarket abuse frameworksConflicts managementInformation barriers to manage material nonpublic informationUnless a specific application deadline is stated in the job posting, applications are accepted on an ongoing basis.Please note, applicants are permitted to redact or remove information on their resume that identifies age, date of birth, or dates of attendance at or graduation from an educational institution.We consider qualified applicants with criminal histories for employment on our team, assessing candidates in a manner consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.Kraken is powered by people from around the world and we celebrate all Krakenites for their diverse talents, backgrounds, contributions and unique perspectives. We hire strictly based on merit, meaning we seek out the candidates with the right abilities, knowledge, and skills considered the most suitable for the job. We encourage you to apply for roles where you don t fully meet the listed requirements, especially if you re passionate or knowledgable about crypto!We may ask candidates to complete job-related skills or work-style assessments as part of our hiring process. These assessments are designed to evaluate competencies relevant to the role and are applied consistently across candidates for similar positions. Assessment results are considered alongside other relevant information, such as experience and interviews, and are not the sole basis for any employment decision.As an equal opportunity employer, we don t tolerate discrimination or harassment of any kind. Whether that s based on race, ethnicity, age, gender identity, citizenship, religion, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, veteran status or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state or local laws. Stay in the knowFollow us on TwitterLearn on the Kraken BlogConnect on LinkedInCandidate Privacy NoticeWhen applying, mention the word CANDYSHOP to show you read the job post completely. This is a beta feature to avoid spam applicants. Companies can search these words to find applicants that read this and see they are human RNDMuMjQ1LjExNi4xMjMM
