Overview
Fintech (financial technology) companies build software for banking, payments, lending, investing, insurance, and other financial services. These companies operate under regulatory frameworks like PCI-DSS, SOC 2, SOX, and various state/federal banking regulations that fundamentally shape how software is built.
Engineering roles in fintech require attention to security, compliance, auditability, and reliability. A bug in fintech isn't just a bad user experience—it can mean financial loss, regulatory fines, or fraud exposure. This raises the bar for engineering quality and testing rigor. Engineers don't need finance backgrounds; domain knowledge is learned on the job. What matters is the mindset—comfort with regulated environments, attention to edge cases, and security-first thinking.
Why Fintech Hiring is Different
Regulatory Reality
Fintech operates under a web of regulations that shape how software is built:
| Regulation | Applies To | Engineering Impact |
|---|---|---|
| PCI-DSS | Payment processing | Data encryption, access controls, audit logging |
| SOC 2 | Most B2B fintech | Security controls, change management, monitoring |
| SOX | Public companies | Financial data integrity, audit trails |
| State regulations | Lending, banking | Varies by product and state |
| KYC/AML | Customer-facing | Identity verification, transaction monitoring |
This isn't bureaucracy for its own sake. These regulations exist because financial software handles real money and real consequences. Engineers who understand this context build better systems.
What This Means for Hiring
You're not looking for compliance experts—that's a separate function. You're looking for engineers who:
- Take requirements seriously (not "we'll fix it later")
- Think about edge cases and failure modes
- Document their work properly
- Follow security best practices without being told
- Ask "what could go wrong?" before deploying
This mindset exists across industries. Healthcare tech, government contractors, aerospace—anyone from a regulated environment will adapt quickly.
What Engineers Actually Need (And Don't)
Required: Compliance Mindset, Not Compliance Expertise
Engineers don't write the compliance rules. They build systems that meet them. The actual requirements:
Security-Conscious Development
- Input validation as habit, not afterthought
- Understanding of common vulnerabilities (OWASP Top 10)
- Proper handling of sensitive data (encryption, access controls)
- Secure coding practices
Reliability Focus
- Testing beyond the happy path
- Thinking about failure modes
- Monitoring and alerting awareness
- Understanding that "works on my machine" isn't sufficient
Documentation Discipline
- Code that others can audit and understand
- Change tracking and version control hygiene
- Requirements traceability (knowing why code exists)
Process Tolerance
- Following deployment procedures
- Code review participation
- Working within change management frameworks
Not Required: Finance Degrees or Banking Experience
This is the biggest misconception in fintech hiring. Engineers learn financial domain knowledge on the job. A payments engineer doesn't need to understand monetary policy. A lending engineer doesn't need a finance MBA.
What matters:
- Can they learn your specific domain?
- Do they ask good questions?
- Can they translate business requirements into technical solutions?
The best fintech engineers often come from:
- Healthcare tech (HIPAA creates similar mindset)
- Government/defense (security-cleared environments)
- E-commerce (payment integrations)
- Any regulated industry
- General software engineering with strong fundamentals
The Certification Question
Certifications like CISSP, CEH, or AWS Security are nice-to-have signals but not requirements for most fintech engineering roles. They indicate interest in security but don't guarantee engineering ability.
The exception: security-specific roles (Security Engineer, AppSec) where certifications demonstrate domain commitment.
Compensation Reality: Fintech Pays Well
Fintech offers a compensation premium, typically 10-20% above general market rates for equivalent roles. Why?
Higher Bar
Regulated environments require more careful engineering. You're paying for attention to detail and process tolerance that not all engineers have.
Competitive Market
Stripe, Square, Plaid, and well-funded fintech startups compete aggressively for talent. Market rates adjust accordingly.
Stability + Growth
Fintech combines startup growth potential with financial services stability. Companies can afford to pay competitively.
Risk Premium
Engineers building systems where bugs have financial consequences command higher salaries.
Salary Benchmarks (US Market, 2026)
| Level | General Market | Fintech Premium | Fintech Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mid (3-5 YOE) | $130-160K | +10-15% | $145-185K |
| Senior (5-8 YOE) | $160-200K | +15-20% | $180-240K |
| Staff (8+ YOE) | $200-260K | +15-20% | $230-310K |
Ranges vary significantly by location, company stage, and specific domain.
Equity Considerations
Fintech startups often offer meaningful equity packages. Unlike some industries where revenue models are unclear, fintech companies have obvious paths to profitability (transaction fees, interest margins, etc.), making equity more tangible.
For candidates, fintech equity can be attractive because:
- Business models are easier to evaluate
- Revenue streams are often visible
- Regulatory moats create defensibility
Background Check Reality: Be Transparent Upfront
Most fintech companies require background checks. This includes:
- Criminal history check
- Credit check (for certain roles)
- Employment verification
- Education verification
- Sometimes fingerprinting for banking-related roles
The Right Approach: Disclose Early
Tell candidates about background check requirements in the first conversation. Why?
Respects Their Time
If someone has a background issue that disqualifies them, they deserve to know before investing in a lengthy interview process.
Builds Trust
Transparency about requirements signals you'll be straight with them about other things too.
Legal Protection
Clear, early disclosure protects against claims of surprise or unfair treatment.
How to Frame It
"Like all fintech companies, we run background checks as a condition of employment. This includes [criminal, credit, employment verification]. If you have any concerns about this, we can discuss now—we evaluate candidates individually and a record doesn't automatically disqualify anyone. We just want to be upfront."
What Disqualifies?
This varies by company and role. Generally:
- Financial crimes are serious concerns
- Recent criminal history weighted more than distant
- Credit issues matter more for roles handling money
- Many companies evaluate on case-by-case basis
The key is being clear about your criteria upfront rather than surprising candidates after offer.
Companies You're Competing With
Understanding your competition helps position your opportunity appropriately.
Tier 1: Fintech Giants
Stripe, Square (Block), Plaid, Coinbase
- Top-of-market compensation ($200-400K+ total comp for senior)
- Strong engineering cultures
- Name recognition
- Remote-friendly
To compete: You probably won't on pure compensation. Compete on ownership, specific domain interest, or stage preference.
Tier 2: Well-Funded Scale-ups
Brex, Ramp, Mercury, Robinhood, Affirm
- Competitive compensation
- High growth
- Meaningful equity
- Strong engineering brands
To compete: Similar story. Emphasize your specific niche, team, or opportunity.
Tier 3: Traditional Finance Tech
Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Capital One Tech
- Stable employment
- Good benefits
- Lower equity upside
- More structured environment
To compete: Startup speed, ownership, equity upside, less bureaucracy.
Your Positioning
Be honest about where you sit. If you're a seed-stage fintech, you're not competing with Stripe on compensation. You're competing on:
- Early-stage equity
- Ownership and impact
- Specific domain passion (maybe you're in a niche they don't touch)
- Team and culture
- Flexibility
Interview Focus: What Actually Matters
Technical Assessment
Standard engineering assessment applies. For fintech-specific signals:
System Design
- How do they handle failure modes?
- Do they think about data integrity?
- Audit logging considerations?
- Security in their designs?
Coding
- Error handling practices
- Input validation habits
- Testing approach
Behavioral Signals
Compliance Comfort
"Tell me about a time you worked in a regulated environment or had to follow strict processes. How did you approach it?"
Good: Understands why processes exist, works within them constructively
Red flag: Sees all process as bureaucracy, wants to circumvent
Security Mindset
"Walk me through how you'd handle sensitive user data in a feature you're building."
Good: Encryption, access controls, audit logging, data minimization
Red flag: "We'd just store it in the database"
Reliability Focus
"Tell me about a production incident you were involved in. What happened and what did you learn?"
Good: Blameless analysis, systematic improvement, monitoring additions
Red flag: Blame-focused, no systematic learning
Building Your Fintech Engineering Culture
Onboarding Compliance Context
Don't assume engineers understand why compliance matters. Invest in onboarding that covers:
- What regulations apply to your product
- Why they exist (real consequences, not just rules)
- How engineering decisions map to compliance requirements
- Who to ask when unsure
Making Compliance Engineering-Friendly
The goal is building systems where doing the right thing is the easy thing:
- Secure defaults in frameworks and libraries
- Automated compliance checks in CI/CD
- Clear documentation of requirements
- Engineering input on compliance tooling
Avoiding the Bureaucracy Trap
Over-process drives away good engineers. Find the balance:
- Process where it matters (security, data handling, deployments)
- Freedom where it doesn't (tooling choices, code style)
- Explain the why, not just the what
- Get engineering input on process design