Special Counsel, Transactions (M&A and Bank Partnerships)

Overview

This role is for an experienced transactional attorney to join the Transactions team within the Legal department. The position focuses on two connected areas:

• Corporate Development and Ventures, including mergers and acquisitions, strategic transactions, and venture investments
• Financial Partnerships, including agreements with banks and other financial institutions supporting reserve, treasury, and payments operations

As needs arise, the role may also support select commercial transactions involving products and services for banks and other financial institutions.

Responsibilities

• Support mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, asset purchases, and other strategic transactions, including structuring, due diligence, drafting definitive agreements, and coordinating signing, closing, and integration matters.
• Advise on joint ventures, minority and venture investments, strategic partnerships with an equity component, and other non-ordinary-course transactions, including term sheets, investment agreements, side letters, and ancillary agreements.
• Structure, draft, and negotiate agreements with banks and financial institutions supporting reserve, treasury, and payments operations, including deposit, custody and safeguarding, account control, and cash management arrangements.
• Act as a trusted partner to Corporate Development and Ventures, Treasury, and Financial Partnerships, leading transactions that involve Legal, Regulatory, Risk, Compliance, Tax, Corporate Governance, Product, and other stakeholders; coordinate with outside counsel when appropriate.
• As needed, support select commercial transactions where the organization provides products, services, or technology to banks and other financial institutions, translating business objectives into contractual terms.
• Develop and expand transaction templates, playbooks, diligence tools, processes, and metrics to improve speed, consistency, and effectiveness across recurring transaction types.
• Help design and lead adoption of AI-enabled workflows for the Transactions team, improving diligence, contract review, issues lists, drafting, deal tracking, and other recurring workflows.
• Use AI to accelerate parts of the transactional process while ensuring the attorney remains responsible for accuracy, privilege, confidentiality, privilege protection, and risk; follow organizational AI, security, and data policies.

Requirements

• J.D. or foreign equivalent and active membership in good standing of at least one U.S. State Bar.
• 7+ years of transactional legal experience at a leading law firm, in-house legal department, or a combination of both.
• Substantial experience with M&A and other corporate transactions and/or financial services transactions, including structuring transactions, drafting first-turn agreements, leading negotiations and diligence, and independently driving complex matters through signing and closing.
• Strong working knowledge of corporate and commercial law, with practical business judgment and ability to coordinate legal, regulatory, tax, accounting, securities, and operational considerations while balancing legal risk, commercial objectives, and strategic goals.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, strong ownership and organization, and ability to manage multiple matters simultaneously in a fast-moving, rapidly changing environment.
• Demonstrated familiarity with and practical use of generative AI in legal or other professional workflows, including sound judgment about when/how to use AI, validating outputs, and protecting privileged, confidential, and material non-public information in a public company environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with banking, deposit, custody, safeguarding, treasury, or other financial services agreements and/or seller-side technology or financial services transactions involving regulated financial institutions, digital assets, stablecoins, payments, cross-border transactions, or other fintech businesses.
• Experience building, implementing, or scaling AI-enabled workflows, prompts, templates, playbooks, or tools for a legal team.

Compensation & Benefits

• Base Pay Range: $200,000 – $262,500
• Starting pay is determined by factors including relevant experience, skill set, qualifications, and other business and organizational needs. Compensation ranges may differ for candidates in other locations.

Location

• #LI-Remote (Remote)

Equal Opportunity

The organization is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status, or any other protected status required by the laws in locations where it hires. The organization participates in the E-Verify Program in certain locations as required by law.