Senior Node Operations Engineer - Payments & Blockchain

Building the Future of Crypto 

Our Krakenites are a world-class team with crypto conviction, united by our desire to discover and unlock the potential of crypto and blockchain technology.

What makes us different?

Kraken is a mission-focused company rooted in crypto values. As a Krakenite, you’ll join us on our mission to accelerate the global adoption of crypto, so that everyone can achieve financial freedom and inclusion. For over a decade, Kraken’s focus on our mission and crypto ethos has attracted many of the most talented crypto experts in the world.

Before you apply, please read the Kraken Culture page to learn more about our internal culture, values, and mission. We also expect candidates to familiarize themselves with the Kraken app. Learn how to create a Kraken account here.

As a fully remote company, we have Krakenites in 70+ countries who speak over 50 languages. Krakenites are industry pioneers who develop premium crypto products for experienced traders, institutions, and newcomers to the space. Kraken is committed to industry-leading security, crypto education, and world-class client support through our products like Kraken Pro, Desktop, Wallet, and Kraken Futures.

Become a Krakenite and build the future of crypto!

Proof of work

The team

We are currently seeking an experienced Node Operations Engineer to join our growing Payments & Blockchain team. The Payments & Blockchain team is responsible for the first and last mile of every dollar (digital or fiat) that goes in or out of Kraken.

Join our Payments team to help integrate Kraken’s systems with an ever-expanding universe of payment providers.

As a member of this team, your focus is on protecting client funds. You will be responsible for building systems that manage blockchain nodes at scale and provide Kraken with best-in-class performance and resiliency.

The opportunity

• Develop systems for automatic backup, monitoring, and remediation of blockchain nodes

• Code Kubernetes Operators and leverage Helm charts to deploy blockchain nodes in the K8s platform developed by the P&B SRE team

• Implement and roll out SLO-based monitoring and alerting for blockchain nodes

• Develop internal tooling and processes to provide abstraction over blockchain nodes

• Troubleshoot, debug, and profile blockchains, identify performance issues, and inform mitigation decisions

• Write high-quality policies, procedures, and technical documentation on blockchain node operations

• Be on call for issues with blockchain nodes and work towards automatic remediation whenever possible

Skills you should HODL

• 7+ years of experience in Site Reliability Engineering, DevOps Engineering, Software Engineering, Platform Engineering, Systems Engineering, or similar roles

• Proficiency in at least one modern application development or utility language

• An analytical mindset with the ability to tackle complex problems

• Knowledge of software development best practices and workflows, with a focus on testing and delivery methodologies

• In-depth knowledge of GNU/Linux systems, their administration, and low-level systems debugging—especially in containerized or OS-level virtualized environments

• Experience with cloud platform services and tooling (GCP, AWS, Azure)

• Experience with metrics-based monitoring systems and crafting SLOs for services

• Understanding of the TCP/IP network stack, DNS, SSL/TLS, and how traffic on IP networks establishes end-to-end security and trust

• Understanding of security best practices and how to build security into systems from inception

• Online availability for remotely fixable, unforeseen issues & on-call rotation

• Ability to communicate technical requirements to non-technical stakeholders

• Strong passion for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies

Nice to haves

• Experience operating blockchain infrastructure—whether in the cloud, a data center, or a server in your basement. Including:

  • Bitcoin

  • Ethereum

  • Solana

  • Cardano

  • And many more

• Experience operating container orchestration tooling, such as Kubernetes or HashiCorp Nomad, including implementing GitOps workflows

• Experience with hybrid environments (cloud and data center) is a plus

• Experience working on validator nodes previously

• Experience with one or more of the following languages:

  • Go

  • Rust

  • Node.js

  • Python

• One or more of the following certifications:

  • CKA

  • CKS

  • OSCP

  • CCNA or equivalent

• Passion for open-source software with previous contributions to the space

#LI-Remote #LI-DP1

This job is accepting ongoing applications and there is no application deadline.

Please note, applicants are permitted to redact or remove information on their resume that identifies age, date of birth, or dates of attendance at or graduation from an educational institution.

We consider qualified applicants with criminal histories for employment on our team, assessing candidates in a manner consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.

Kraken is powered by people from around the world and we celebrate all Krakenites for their diverse talents, backgrounds, contributions and unique perspectives. We hire strictly based on merit, meaning we seek out the candidates with the right abilities, knowledge, and skills considered the most suitable for the job. We encourage you to apply for roles where you don't fully meet the listed requirements, especially if you're passionate or knowledgable about crypto!

As an equal opportunity employer, we don’t tolerate discrimination or harassment of any kind. Whether that’s based on race, ethnicity, age, gender identity, citizenship, religion, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, veteran status or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state or local laws. 

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