DeFi Growth Partnership Manager

Web3 has created a new era of decentralised finance, democratising financial access. However, it has fallen short in generating mass consumer applications and remains largely centred around finance. We believe blockchain technology is a cornerstone for the future of new, open Internet applications. Today, there are limits to what you can build on-chain. Many factors constrain this, from the cost of running applications to the fundamental performance limitations of existing blockchains. We believe that new technologies can unlock a new class of real-time applications that normally must be built on Web2 foundations. Enabling these systems to be built on-chain will allow the free movement of businesses and users between online platforms, creating what we call a true virtual society. We are building Somnia, a fast and cost-effective EVM-based blockchain, to achieve this. Somnia is a layer-one blockchain with full EVM compatibility, capable of processing over 400,000 transactions per second with sub-second latency and low fees. This will unlock a new wave of on-chain applications. Initially, we are focusing on gaming, metaverse, and social experiences. But we are not even 100% certain of what can be built with the technology we are creating.

Role Overview: As a Business Growth Manager at Somnia, your focus will be on identifying and closing DeFi partnerships and deals that accelerate our ecosystem growth. You will leverage your deep understanding of decentralised finance protocols, yield farming, liquidity provision, and DeFi infrastructure to build strategic relationships with key players in the space. Working closely with the Head of Ecosystem, you'll support comprehensive account management for our DeFi partners while actively sourcing new opportunities. Your DeFi expertise and established network will be crucial in shaping our go-to-market strategy, ensuring we capture high-value partnerships with protocols, DAOs, yield aggregators, and institutional DeFi participants. You'll play a pivotal role in positioning Somnia as a premier destination for DeFi innovation and liquidity.

Key Responsibilities:

• Identify and close strategic DeFi partnerships with protocols, DAOs, yield platforms, and institutional players, driving complex deals involving multi-party integrations and tokenomics alignment to closure.
• Support the Head of Ecosystem with comprehensive account management for existing DeFi partners ensuring ongoing relationship health, expansion opportunities, and strategic value realization.
• Actively source and onboard high-quality DeFi and non-DeFi projects to the Somnia ecosystem, conducting due diligence on protocols, tokenomics, and strategic fit.
• Build and maintain a sophisticated pipeline of DeFi and non-DeFi opportunities categorized by type, TVL potential, and strategic priority, using your established network to generate warm introductions.
• Help shape and execute DeFi-focused GTM strategies, collaborating with technical teams on integration requirements and collecting partner feedback to inform product development around yield optimization and protocol integrations.
• Leverage your DeFi network to generate warm introductions and facilitate partnership discussions with key decision-makers at leading protocols.
• Review and manage grant applications, schedule calls with grant applicants and assess their strategic alignment with the overall strategy.
• Collect feedback from DeFi partners and community to inform product development, particularly around yield optimization, liquidity incentives, and protocol integrations.

Qualifications:

• 3+ years of business development experience in DeFi or broader blockchain space, with preference for early-stage protocol experience and demonstrated success in closing DeFi partnerships.
• Deep understanding of DeFi protocols, yield farming, liquidity provision, and tokenomics, with proven ability to shape go-to-market strategies for DeFi products and services.
• Established network within the DeFi ecosystem including relationships with protocol teams, DAOs, yield aggregators, and institutional DeFi participants that can be leveraged for partnership opportunities.
• Strong technical fluency to discuss protocol integrations, smart contract functionality, and DeFi mechanics with both technical and non-technical stakeholders, while effectively communicating Somnia's value proposition.
• Proven track record of developing business development processes from the ground up in startup environments, with experience managing complex deal cycles and multi-stakeholder negotiations.

Range: $80,000 - 100,000 + bonus allocation + incentive structure

Role Location: The role is remote, but we are looking for someone based in Europe or Asia (preferably).

Reporting Lines: This role will report to the Managing Director of the Foundation, however, everyday work and tasks will be supervised and reported to the Head of Operations.