Commercial Counsel

Overview

A growing financial technology company is seeking an experienced Commercial Counsel to join their in-house legal team. This role involves owning the legal infrastructure behind key commercial and strategic partnerships, focusing on complex banking products and services. The position offers the opportunity to architect innovative partnership structures and navigate regulatory requirements in a fast-paced fintech environment.

Responsibilities

• Structure, draft, and negotiate complex customer, vendor, and third-party agreements related to payments, money movement services, deposit accounts, card programs, and lending products.
• Develop and maintain legal playbooks, contract templates, terms of service, notices, and disclosures to enable efficient scaling without compromising quality.
• Lead negotiations with high-growth fintech companies and enterprise customers, balancing commercial objectives with regulatory compliance.
• Collaborate closely with Sales, Partnerships, Risk, and Compliance teams to align contracting strategies with business goals and risk tolerance.
• Support the broader legal team with research, product and regulatory advice, exam management, subpoena responses, litigation support, and corporate governance.
• Contribute to improving legal operations, policies, and processes to support ongoing company growth.

Requirements

• Minimum 5 years of legal practice experience, preferably with law firm background in technology transactions or fintech, or in-house experience at a fintech or financial institution.
• Proven ability to independently draft and negotiate commercial agreements with strong knowledge of contract law and commercial transactions.
• Experience managing complex commercial negotiations.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to handle multiple initiatives and stakeholders simultaneously.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with traditional commercial banking products and services such as ACH, wire transfers, accounts, lending, cards, cash management, sweeps, and check issuance/deposit.
• Experience in structured finance or lending products.
• Understanding of money transmission regulations.

Compensation & Benefits

• Annual base salary range: $200,000 - $250,000 plus equity.
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance plans, including options fully covered for employees and dependents.
• Family planning and fertility benefits with reimbursement up to $20,000.
• Up to $2,000 per month post-tax rent subsidy for employees living within 2 miles of the office.
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA) and Health Savings Account (HSA) options.
• 401(k) plan with self-directed brokerage options.
• Flexible time-off policy.
• 100% paid parental leave (16 weeks for birth mothers, 12 weeks for primary caregivers, 8 weeks for secondary caregivers).
• Up to $4,500 annually for backup childcare reimbursements.
• Catered lunches and dinners for employees based in the San Francisco office.
• Commuter benefits including paid transportation to and from the office.
• Regular team-building events including an annual offsite.

Location

This role can be based in the San Francisco office (3–4 days per week) or remote. The office is located in the Presidio area of San Francisco. Relocation support and rent subsidies are available for local employees.

This opportunity is open to all qualified candidates. The organization values diversity and inclusion and encourages applicants from all backgrounds. Reasonable accommodations are available during the application and recruitment process upon request.