At a Glance
- Tasks: Design and build backend infrastructure for innovative DeFi protocols and vault products.
- Company: Join Aave Labs, a leader in decentralised finance with a global impact.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, diverse culture, and opportunities for personal growth.
- Other info: Embrace diversity and be part of a team that values your unique identity.
- Why this job: Make a real difference in financial accessibility while working with cutting-edge technology.
- Qualifications: 5-8+ years of backend engineering experience, strong Rust skills, and a passion for DeFi.
The predicted salary is between 63000 - 77000 £ per year.
Aave Labs began with a simple question: how do we make financial services like borrowing, saving, and earning more accessible globally? We built the Aave Protocol, now the world’s largest and most trusted onchain lending market, connecting decentralized finance with individuals, traditional finance, and fintech. Today, we build trusted, high-quality products that expand access to lending, credit, and savings globally.
Our culture is centred around building trusted products that help people access and discover economic opportunities. We hold a high bar for quality and craftsmanship. No detail is too small. Trust depends on it. We’re a global team building products people can actually use, turning complex technology into something simple and reliable. We stay aligned, move quickly, and think long term, while keeping teams lean and focused on impact.
We're hiring a Staff Backend Engineer to work with a small and highly technical team building the infrastructure behind new DeFi protocols and vault products at Aave Labs. The role focuses on the systems between onchain protocols and the applications built around them. This includes vault management and curation systems, constraint-based allocation solvers, secure protocol infrastructure, high-throughput blockchain indexing, and performant, well-documented APIs. You'll work on systems where correctness, reliability, performance, and security directly affect user funds and protocol integrity. The role has significant ownership and autonomy across offchain infrastructure and components that interact closely with smart contracts and onchain state. You will also work closely with Quant Engineers. Quant owns the financial models, assumptions, validation, and calibration. Backend owns the production systems, data pipelines, and services that run those models. Smart contract engineers own their onchain integration and enforcement.
How you can make an impact:
- Design, build, and operate backend infrastructure for new DeFi protocols and vault products
- Build vault management, curation, and constraint-based allocation systems
- Build high-throughput blockchain indexers and data-ingestion pipelines
- Design performant, stable, and well-documented APIs for applications and internal systems
- Work with Quant Engineers to turn reviewed models into reliable production services
- Work closely with smart contract engineers on systems that consume onchain state and submit onchain transactions
- Take technical ownership of projects and help maintain a high engineering standard across the team
Let's connect if you have:
- 5-8+ years of backend engineering experience, including ownership of production systems
- Strong experience with Rust. Experience with C++, Go, Zig, or another systems language can substitute
- Experience building high-performance, data-intensive, or event-driven backend systems
- Strong PostgreSQL knowledge
- Experience with blockchain, DeFi, financial infrastructure, or another environment involving real capital
- The ability to work independently in a high-autonomy environment
- Strong judgment around correctness, reliability, and security
Nice to haves:
- Experience with cross-chain blockchain indexing or large-scale data ingestion
- Experience designing constraint, optimization, solver, or allocation systems
- Experience reading smart contracts and integrating with EVM-based protocols
- Experience operating financial systems where correctness and reliability affect capital
- Hands-on experience with Kafka and ClickHouse or similar analytical databases
Haven’t quite met all the criteria? Let’s not miss out on the chance to speak. Whilst you might not meet every single requirement, you might bring other, more exciting skills to the company!
Aave Labs celebrates diversity and views each and every team member as a separate individual with their own unique identity. No matter your race, religion, gender, ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation or even the wallet you use, we welcome you at Aave Labs. As an equal opportunities employer, we take accountability and believe in everyone's potential to build, create and inspire changes. With a mission to build a diverse workforce, we are proud to foster a working environment in which everyone can feel safe and valued for who they are.
We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.
Staff Backend Engineer, Vaults in London employer: Aave Labs
Aave Labs is an exceptional employer that champions innovation and inclusivity in the rapidly evolving world of decentralized finance. With a strong focus on quality and craftsmanship, employees enjoy a collaborative work culture that encourages autonomy and ownership over impactful projects. Located in a dynamic environment, Aave Labs offers ample opportunities for professional growth while fostering a diverse workforce where every individual is valued and empowered to contribute their unique skills.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Staff Backend Engineer, Vaults in London
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at Aave Labs or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to Aave Labs.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like Aave Labs.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like Aave Labs that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace Staff Backend Engineer, Vaults in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Aave Labs.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Aave Labs and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at Aave Labs
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Aave Labs uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.
