Staff Software Engineer (Platform - Product Foundations)
$218k - $257k USD
Ready to be pushed beyond what you think you’re capable of?
At Coinbase, our mission is to increase economic freedom in the world. It’s a massive, ambitious opportunity that demands the best of us, every day, as we build the emerging onchain platform — and with it, the future global financial system.
To achieve our mission, we’re seeking a very specific candidate. We want someone who is passionate about our mission and who believes in the power of crypto and blockchain technology to update the financial system. We want someone who is eager to leave their mark on the world, who relishes the pressure and privilege of working with high caliber colleagues, and who actively seeks feedback to keep leveling up. We want someone who will run towards, not away from, solving the company’s hardest problems.
Our work culture is intense and isn’t for everyone. But if you want to build the future alongside others who excel in their disciplines and expect the same from you, there’s no better place to be.
While many roles at Coinbase are remote-first, we are not remote-only. In-person participation is required throughout the year. Team and company-wide offsites are held multiple times annually to foster collaboration, connection, and alignment. Attendance is expected and fully supported.
About the Teams:
The teams within Platform Product Foundations build the foundational backend services that power the core of our platform from Identity to Financial Infrastructure. We architect high-reliability distributed services that serve as the company's bedrock. On any given day, our systems handle massive scale across our concurrent users and high-volume financial transactions where absolute precision is required. Whether we are scaling global authentication flows or building audit-ready ledgers for complex money movement, we focus on solving the low-latency and high-conformance challenges of a rapidly evolving ecosystem.
What you’ll be doing:
- Architect and build foundational backend systems with a focus on performance, scalability, and reliability
- Drive strategic technical direction for complex, cross-team initiatives
- Establish and evolve platform best practices, frameworks, and architectural standards within the team
- Provide deep technical mentorship, guide design decisions, and raise the bar for engineering quality
- Collaborate with product, finance, and engineering leadership to shape the team's technical roadmap
- Drive system improvements by embedding AI into engineering and operational practices
What we look for in you:
- 8+ years building and operating large-scale distributed systems in production
- Deep expertise in backend programming (e.g., Go, Python, Java) and cloud-native architecture
- Proven track record designing highly available, high-performance systems
- Ability to anticipate scaling bottlenecks and take proactive measures
- Experience leading cross-functional technical initiatives and mentoring engineers
- Ability to distill complex technical concepts into clear, actionable solutions
- Demonstrates the ability to responsibly use generative AI tools and copilots (e.g., LibreChat, Gemini, Glean) in daily workflows, continuously learn as tools evolve, and apply human-in-the-loop practices to deliver business-ready outputs and drive measurable improvements in efficiency, cost, and quality.
Nice to haves:
- Experience with financial data, accounting systems, or high-precision transaction processing OR
- Experience in the Auth domain
- You’ve worked with Golang, Ruby, Docker, Rails, Postgres, MongoDB or DynamoDB
- You have gone through rapid growth in your company (from startup to mid-size)
Job # : P75025
Pay Transparency Notice:Depending on your work location, the target annual base salary for this position can range as detailed below. Total compensation may also include equity and bonus eligibility and benefits (including medical, dental, vision and 401(k)).
Annual base salary range (excluding equity and bonus):
$218,025—$256,500 USD
Please be advised that each candidate may submit a maximum of four applications within any 30-day period. We encourage you to carefully evaluate how your skills and interests align with Coinbase's roles before applying.
Commitment to Equal Opportunity
Coinbase is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sex, gender expression or identity, sexual orientation or any other basis protected by applicable law. Coinbase will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law. For US applicants, you may view the Employee Rights and the Know Your Rights notices by clicking on their corresponding links. Additionally, Coinbase participates in the E-Verify program in certain locations, as required by law.
Coinbase is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the employment process, please contact us at accommodations[at]coinbase.com to let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. For quick access to screen reading technology compatible with this site click here to download a free compatible screen reader (free step by step tutorial can be found here).
Global Data Privacy Notice for Job Candidates and Applicants
Depending on your location, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) may regulate the way we manage the data of job applicants. Our full notice outlining how data will be processed as part of the application procedure for applicable locations is available here. By submitting your application, you are agreeing to our use and processing of your data as required. For US applicants only, by submitting your application you are agreeing to arbitration of disputes as outlined here.
AI Disclosure
For select roles, Coinbase is piloting an AI tool based on machine learning technologies to conduct initial screening interviews to qualified applicants. The tool simulates realistic interview scenarios and engages in dynamic conversation. A human recruiter will review your interview responses, provided in the form of a voice recording and/or transcript, to assess them against the qualifications and characteristics outlined in the job description.
For select roles, Coinbase is also piloting an AI interview intelligence platform to transcribe and summarize interview notes, allowing our interviewers to fully focus on you as the candidate.
The above pilots are for testing purposes and Coinbase will not use AI to make decisions impacting employment. To request a reasonable accommodation due to disability, please contact accommodations[at]coinbase.com