Software Engineer - Backend

Cardless is looking for an experienced backend engineer to join our exceptional team! You’ll play a key role in designing, building, and scaling the systems that power our co-branded credit card platform spanning domains like applications, accounts, transactions, fraud, risk, and rewards. As a software engineer, your responsibilities will include but not be limited to the following: Responsibilities - Design and build scalable, secure, and high-performance backend systems and services that support Cardless’s core financial products - Contribute to architectural discussions and decisions to evolve our platform as we grow - Take ownership of projects from design through production — including requirements gathering, implementation, testing, deployment, and ongoing maintenance - Collaborate cross-functionally with product managers, designers, other engineers, and stakeholders (external partners, risk, compliance) to deliver high-quality features quickly and reliably - Identify and drive improvements in system reliability, observability, performance, and developer experience - Provide technical guidance and thought partnership to peers across the engineering organization What we look for - Strong experience designing and implementing backend systems and services that operate at scale (typically 5+ years of industry experience) - Solid understanding of distributed systems, APIs, databases, and infrastructure fundamentals - Proficiency with a modern backend language (e.g. Java, Python) and ecosystem - Track record of delivering complex technical projects end-to-end, collaborating effectively with cross-functional partners - Deep, low-level expertise in one or more backend domains (e.g., databases, scaling systems, distributed systems) - Passion for building robust, maintainable systems that have real-world impact for customers Nice to have - Experience building and maintaining external, public-facing APIs - Familiarity with financial systems, reconciliation workflows, or data integrity challenges - Exposure to ML pipelines or feature stores Why Cardless You’ll join a collaborative, fast-moving team that values craftsmanship, curiosity, and impact. We’re building products that enable leading brands to offer credit in new ways — and we’re just getting started. Compensation Note: This role is open to experienced engineers only This role has an annual starting salary range of $165,000-$260,000 + equity + benefits (see below). Actual compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skills, experience, and specific work location. Benefits We're headquartered in San Francisco, CA, with a beautiful office in the Financial District. We're proud to offer our team excellent benefits: 💸 Meaningful Start-up equity 🏥 100% health, vision & dental primary coverage ➕ 75% health, vision & dental dependent coverage 🍱 Catered lunches 🚎 $250/month Commuter benefit 👶 Parental leave ✈️ Team building events & happy hours 🌴 Flexible PTO with a minimum of 15 days off per year 🖥️ Apple equipment 💸 401k plan Location San Francisco, CA — our office is in the Jackson Square district. This role is 5 days a week in office.