Head of DeFi

Particula is the prime ratings provider for digital assets, now bringing trusted, data-driven ratings on-chain. As DeFi matures and converges with Trad Fi, we’re building the rails that help institutions, protocols, and builders use ratings to unlock safer, more efficient capital flows.

We’re hiring a Head of DeFi to lead our on-chain strategy - shaping the product, technical integrations, and go-to-market with leading ecosystems and protocols. If you have a strong DeFi network, a track record of building and shipping in crypto, and the ability to bridge Trad Fi and DeFi, this role offers the chance to define how ratings become a foundational primitive for the on-chain economy.

• Own the end-to-end DeFi strategy for bringing Particula's ratings on-chain: architecture, product roadmap, integration pipeline, revenue models, commercialization, and market positioning.
• Design on-chain product primitives that make ratings composable across protocols, chains, and ecosystems.
• Oversee cross-chain rating infrastructure design, strategy, protocol integration roadmap, institutional partnerships (L1/L2s, oracles, lending markets, custodians), security frameworks, and multi-chain operational reliability.
• Coordinate with protocol engineering teams on rating consumer interface implementation and smart contract integration patterns.
• Partner with BD to source, structure, negotiate, and close strategic partnerships; establish joint GTMs with ecosystems, infrastructure providers, and protocols.
• Navigate governance forums, technical working groups, and standards bodies to drive adoption and ecosystem alignment.
• Define and validate business cases for ratings usage (pricing, risk parameters, collateral eligibility, governance automation, compliance tooling) to drive revenue growth.
• Own market intelligence: track ecosystem evolution, regulatory dynamics, protocol trends, and risk developments to inform strategic priorities.
• Collaborate with engineering to ship secure, production-grade smart contracts and robust APIs; set engineering standards for gas efficiency, data freshness, reliability, auditability, and SLAs.
• Manage integration lifecycle from technical design through audit completion to mainnet deployment; coordinate audit processes and security configuration.
• Represent Particula publicly: conferences, governance forums, ecosystem calls, and thought leadership.
• Build and mentor a high-performing team across product, solutions engineering, and partnerships; drive technical decisions and guide the team on protocol mechanics, security patterns, and integration architecture.

• 5+ years in crypto/DeFi with a deep, active network across protocols, L1/L2s, oracles, market makers, asset managers, and infrastructure providers.
• Proven track record shipping technical DeFi products: smart contracts (Solidity/Vyper), oracle integrations, data pipelines, indexers, and/or risk tooling.
• Multi-chain deployment experience across EVM ecosystems with understanding of bridge security models, verification mechanisms, latency trade-offs, and cross-chain data integrity patterns.
• Strong product sensibility: translate market needs into technical specs, prioritize roadmaps, deliver iterative value, and architect protocol integration patterns that drive adoption.
• Commercial acumen: demonstrable BD/partnership success - structuring deals, negotiating integrations, designing monetization models, and closing revenue-generating partnerships.
• Deep fluency in DeFi mechanisms: collateralization models, risk parameters, liquidation systems, governance frameworks, MEV considerations, cross-chain bridges, staking economics, yield strategies, and liquidity incentives.
• Understanding of oracle security patterns, ZK proof verification, data feed consumption, and cross-chain messaging protocol evaluation (security assumptions, verification models, gas optimization, failure modes).
• Comfort with reliability engineering: SLAs, data integrity monitoring, incident response protocols, audit coordination, and operational excellence.
• Excellent stakeholder management: operate effectively from C-suite executives to protocol engineers; lead technical architecture discussions while translating complexity for business stakeholders.
• Highly practical problem solver who drives execution to completion across technical and commercial work streams.
• High integrity, low ego, execution-focused; willing to dive into code, documentation, governance proposals, and community channels as needed.
• Bonus:
  Trad Fi experience (credit ratings, risk analytics, structured products, asset servicing)

• Offsites with the team in exciting locations
• Flexible working hours in a company that relies on remote work
• Exciting product in a very dynamic market environment as well as founding-level ownership of a key growth function.
• Values-based start-up culture
• Many opportunities to develop further and network with committed people
• Flat hierarchy
• Cash salary: gross annual salary & potential share options and bonus for…