Software Engineer II, Foundation

Software Engineer II, Foundation

Full-Time 63000 - 77000 £ / year (est.) No working from home possible
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At a Glance

  • Tasks: Build and operate essential cloud infrastructure and Kubernetes clusters for innovative projects.
  • Company: Join Chainalysis, a leader in blockchain data and AI-driven intelligence.
  • Benefits: Enjoy competitive salary, health benefits, remote work, and growth opportunities.
  • Other info: Diverse and inclusive culture committed to your personal and professional growth.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact on cutting-edge technology that shapes the future of blockchain.
  • Qualifications: 3+ years in software or infrastructure engineering with hands-on AWS experience.

The predicted salary is between 63000 - 77000 £ per year.

Platform Engineering at Chainalysis provides the shared infrastructure, tooling, and developer experience layer that powers every engineering team. We are moving away from team-owned infrastructure silos and consolidating onto shared, scalable platform patterns. The Foundation discipline owns the substrate: cloud infrastructure, networking, Kubernetes, streaming, and security primitives. Everything else runs on what we build.

Your job is straightforward: build, improve, and operate the infrastructure primitives that every service at Chainalysis depends on - Kubernetes clusters, cloud networking, streaming infrastructure (Kafka / WarpStream), secrets management, IAM, and the reconcilers that make it all self-service and drift-free. This is an infrastructure-focused IC role at the C4 level, typically suited for someone with 3-5 years of experience. You will work alongside senior engineers who will pair with you, review your work, and invest in your growth. You will report to the Senior Manager of Platform Engineering.

In this role, you'll:

  • Build and maintain cloud infrastructure across AWS and GCP using Terraform - designing the modules and patterns that provision the substrate our services run on, and thinking beyond the immediate use case to how your work is consumed across the organization.
  • Operate and evolve multi-tenant Kubernetes clusters (EKS) serving the entire engineering organization - owning node lifecycle, upgrades, security contexts, and networking decisions that affect every team.
  • Own the operational side of our streaming infrastructure migration from managed Kafka (MSK) to WarpStream, building and maintaining the tooling that supports it.
  • Contribute to platform tooling and reconcilers that underpin our platform contract model - writing Go, working with the Kubernetes API, and building high-quality self-service primitives that engineering teams rely on to declare what their services need.
  • Design and maintain foundational networking and security infrastructure - transit gateways, GCP interconnect, ingress, security groups, IAM policies, and IRSA - getting the invisible plumbing right so nobody has to think about it.
  • Participate in on-call rotations and drive operational excellence - responding to infrastructure incidents, writing and improving runbooks, and feeding every incident pattern back into automation so the same class of issue never repeats.

We're looking for candidates who have:

  • 3+ years of software engineering or infrastructure engineering experience.
  • Hands-on experience with AWS services (EC2, EKS, IAM, S3, VPC, or similar) - we're looking for people who have built and operated real infrastructure, not certifications.
  • Working knowledge of Kubernetes in production - you have operated or deployed workloads on K8s clusters beyond a local environment.
  • Experience with infrastructure-as-code (Terraform strongly preferred; Pulumi or CloudFormation acceptable).
  • Proficiency in at least one of Go, Python, or shell scripting - Go is preferred because our reconciler work is in Go, but you should be ready to turn your hand to whatever the problem demands.
  • Comfort with CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions, Argo, Jenkins, or similar) and hands-on experience with on-call and incident response - you understand what it means to be accountable for production systems.

You might also have:

  • Experience building Kubernetes operators or controllers - CRDs, reconcilers, and the controller-runtime library.
  • Familiarity with streaming infrastructure (Kafka, WarpStream, or similar event-driven systems) or depth in networking (VPCs, transit gateways, ingress controllers, DNS, load balancing, and security groups).
  • Experience in regulated environments (SOC 2, ISO-27001, or similar compliance frameworks) or familiarity with GitOps patterns (ArgoCD, Flux).
  • A passion for platform engineering as leverage - you care about making other engineers more productive, and when you see toil, your instinct is to eliminate it.

Technologies we use:

  • Languages: Go, Python, Bash/Shell, HCL (Terraform).
  • Cloud: AWS (EC2, EKS, IAM, S3, VPC, Lambda), GCP.
  • Infrastructure as Code: Terraform.
  • Kubernetes: EKS, Helm, CRDs, controller-runtime.
  • Streaming: Kafka, WarpStream (migrating from MSK).
  • Networking: Transit Gateway, GCP Interconnect, Ingress Controllers, DNS, Security Groups.
  • Identity & Security: IAM, IRSA, Secrets Management.
  • CI/CD: GitHub Actions.
  • GitOps: ArgoCD, Flux.

AI at Chainalysis AI is not a feature at Chainalysis - it is a new way of working. One that turns instructions into work done, and helps us move faster than the threats we're built to counter, and we expect our employees to take ownership of the output and ensure quality. As the world's most trusted blockchain analytics platform, Chainalysis sits at a rare intersection of proprietary data, regulatory relationships and crypto expertise that makes it uniquely placed to shape and lead the next era of AI-driven intelligence - and we expect everyone here, regardless of role, to be an active part of it. AI fluency is tied directly to how we measure performance and how we plan to win. There is no substitute for your own curiosity. We provide the tools, workflows, and space to experiment - but the expectation is that you develop these capabilities yourself, bring ideas, and collaborate across teams to reinvent the way work gets done. We are not using AI to do less. We are using it to do what was never possible before.

About Chainalysis Chainalysis is the blockchain data platform, making it easy to connect the movement of digital assets to real-world services. Powered by deep blockchain data and AI, organizations can investigate illicit activity, manage risk exposure, and develop innovative market solutions built on the industry's most trusted blockchain intelligence. Our mission is to build trust in blockchains, blending safety and security with an unwavering commitment to growth and innovation. You belong here. At Chainalysis, we believe that diversity of experience and thought makes us stronger. With both customers and employees around the world, we are committed to ensuring our team reflects the unique communities around us. We are ensuring we keep learning by committing to continually revisit and reevaluate our diversity culture. We encourage applicants across any race, ethnicity, gender/gender expression, age, spirituality, ability, experience and more. If you need any accommodations to make our interview process more accessible to you due to a disability, don't hesitate to let us know. We can't wait to meet you.

Software Engineer II, Foundation employer: chainalysis-careers

Chainalysis is an exceptional employer located in Greater London, offering a dynamic work culture that fosters innovation and collaboration in the rapidly evolving field of cryptocurrency. Employees benefit from comprehensive growth opportunities, mentorship from experienced leaders, and the chance to work on cutting-edge technology that shapes the future of finance. Join us to be part of a mission-driven team dedicated to establishing trust in cryptocurrency data systems while enjoying a supportive environment that values your contributions.

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Contact Details:

chainalysis-careers Recruitment Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫

We think this is how you could land Software Engineer II, Foundation

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We think you need these skills to ace Software Engineer II, Foundation

AWS Services (EC2, EKS, IAM, S3, VPC)
GCP
Kubernetes
Terraform
Go
Python
Shell Scripting

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 chainalysis-careers.

Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at chainalysis-careers 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 chainalysis-careers

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 chainalysis-careers 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.