Building the Future of Crypto
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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.
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Proof of work
The team
Payward 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 opportunity
Lead 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 Leadership
Own compliance coverage across global capital markets activities, including:
Trading venues and exchange operations
Broker and OTC trading
OTC Derivatives
Spot markets (digital assets and securities)
Tokenization and digital securities
Listings and issuer-related processes
Provide strategic oversight of market structure, trading conduct, and capital markets frameworks
Act as compliance lead supporting trading venue development, including alignment with FCA expectations for MTFs and similar market infrastructures
Lead and develop a global Markets Compliance team, providing direction, oversight, and prioritization across regional and functional coverage
Partner closely with Enterprise Risk and Market Risk functions to ensure integrated oversight of market, liquidity, and conduct risks across the firm.
Strategic Advisory & Business Partnership
Act as a trusted advisor to leadership on trading, market structure, and capital markets strategy
Provide commercially aligned guidance to support product innovation and global expansion
Play a key role in business structuring decisions, including entity design, operating models, and jurisdictional expansion
Ensure regulatory considerations are embedded in strategic planning, product development, and market expansion
Entity-Level Governance & Regulatory Oversight
Lead and oversee entity-level compliance frameworks across regulated entities
Ensure appropriate governance, escalation, and control frameworks for trading and market conduct
Provide independent second-line challenge to trading and capital markets activities
Manage regulators including CBI, FCA, SEC, CFTC, and other global authorities
Ensure appropriate compliance resourcing and expertise supporting regulated activities
Market Integrity & Surveillance Oversight
Oversee market abuse and trading conduct risk global frameworks including:
Market manipulation
Insider trading
Spoofing and layering
Wash trading
Conflicts of interest
Ensure surveillance and monitoring frameworks remain aligned with evolving regulatory expectations
Oversee continued enhancement of surveillance governance and regulatory reporting frameworks, including emerging European requirements
Review thematic trends and surveillance outputs to drive control improvements and risk identification
Maintain oversight of escalation and governance processes relating to market abuse
Regulatory Frameworks & Global Coverage
Ensure 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 FCA
United States: SEC, CFTC, NFA
Global: VARA (UAE), MAS (Singapore), BMA / DABA (Bermuda), CIRO / UMIR (Canada)
Support expansion into emerging markets, ensuring scalable and consistent compliance frameworks
Product, Listings & Market Development
Lead compliance input into:
New trading products and market structures
Tokenization and digital securities
Listings and issuer frameworks
Ensure market integrity, disclosure, and regulatory controls are embedded from inception
Conflicts of Interest, Information Barriers, Internal Investigations
Manage conflicts of interest globally including vendor solutions
Oversee and maintain information barriers including wall crossing procedures
Lead internal investigations working closely with Employee Relations
Skills you should HODL
10+ years in markets, trading, or capital markets compliance
Senior leadership roles within exchanges, broker-dealers, or trading platforms
Deep expertise in MiCA, MiFID II / MAR, FCA trading venue / MTF frameworks
Strong working knowledge of SEC / CFTC / NFA & global regulatory environments across APAC, Middle East, and emerging markets
Strong understanding of order book dynamics, trading mechanics, market microstructure, capital markets lifecycle (including listings), information barriers to manage price sensitive information
Familiarity with surveillance technologies and data-driven monitoring frameworks
Proven ability to lead global compliance programs
Ability to operate as a senior advisor and influence executive stakeholders
Experience managing complex, multi-jurisdictional regulatory environments
Strong background in:
Trading venues/market infrastructure
Market structure
Market abuse frameworks
Conflicts management
Information barriers to manage material nonpublic information
Unless 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.
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Compensation Range: $193.6K - $431.2K