Smart Contract Engineer

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CoW DAO is on a mission to protect Ethereum users from MEV and optimise trade execution across DeFi. We achieve this through the CoW Protocol, CoW Swap (a leading intent‑based DEX aggregator), and the innovative MEV Blocker, which together help secure, aggregate and route trades for optimal outcomes. We also fund values‑aligned projects via the CoW Grants Program. CoW Protocol is consistently ranked among the top DEX aggregators by monthly volume and is the largest intent‑based exchange.

Our MEV Blocker protects trades from harmful MEV extraction and is integrated across the Ethereum ecosystem. The CoW AMM is the only live AMM designed to protect liquidity providers from LVR (loss‑versus‑rebalancing). With over 100 open‑source repositories on Git Hub, we’re transparent, community‑driven and deeply committed to the open‑source ethos. Our real‑time Dune Analytics dashboard showcases billions in cumulative trading volume and a rapidly growing user base.

As we continue to scale, CoW DAO remains at the forefront of DeFi innovation, prioritising security, efficiency and decentralisation.

Location: We are a fully remote team, and although we hire almost globally, there is a preference for this role to be based in Europe or remote +/- 4 hours CEST time. Please note we’re not hiring from the United States, Australia or New Zealand.

Position: Full‑time contractor.

You will join a small group of highly experienced smart contract engineers and work closely with them to architect, build and iterate on the protocol, not just maintain it. If you enjoy digging deep into problems, are not afraid to throw away code, and like collaborating in public with a strong Git Hub history, this role is for you.

• Build new protocol features by designing and implementing smart contracts and ensuring they integrate cleanly with our off‑chain infrastructure.
• Work on sophisticated DeFi integrations such as flash‑loan based flows with top protocols, as well as collaborations with leading wallets and lending markets.
• Help reshape the next iteration of CoW Protocol, focusing on decentralisation, verifiable execution and pragmatic on‑chain order settlement.
• Support the health of the protocol by investigating suspicious transactions, detecting on‑chain mis‑behaviour and contributing to CoW DAO governance discussions and proposals.
• Review and advise on integrations from external teams, including grant proposals and support for grantees building on top of CoW Protocol.
• Collaborate in a remote‑first environment through code reviews, async discussions and a public Git Hub‑driven development process with strong testing and CI.

• Smart contracts:
  Solidity, Foundry (and occasionally Hardhat).
• Backend and services:
  Rust and Kubernetes, where contracts connect to off‑chain components.
• Monitoring and debugging:
  Tenderly, Grafana and Elasticsearch for tracing and alerting.
• Data and analysis:
  Python, Dune Analytics.
• Governance tools:
  Safe multisig, Snapshot.
• Supported chains:
  Ethereum, Gnosis Chain, Arbitrum, Base and potentially others as the roadmap expands.

• You have solid Solidity experience and a track record on EVM‑compatible chains, ideally visible through meaningful Git Hub activity and collaboration with others.
• You are strong in Rust or Python;
  Rust is preferred but deep Python skills plus a real willingness to learn Rust also work.
• You are a problem solver who likes to dig into issues, reason about trade‑offs and architect “masterpiece” level solutions rather than quick hacks.
• You are comfortable working in a highly async, remote set‑up, with thoughtful written communication and detailed code reviews.
• You take ownership, follow through and are curious about extending and reiterating on the protocol rather than just implementing tickets.

• Familiarity with the DeFi ecosystem and major protocols.
• Experience contributing to or maintaining open‑source projects.

• Flexible work environment:
  Join our hub in Lisbon or work remotely.
• Token plan:
  Have a stake in our mission and shape the future of CoW DAO.
• Periodic…