Senior Backend Engineer

Branch Job Overview

Imagine a world where every person has improved access to financial services. With enhanced opportunities, people can start new businesses, finance their children's education, and cover unexpected medical expenses—the possibilities for improvement are endless.

Branch is a global technology company revolutionizing financial access for millions of underserved banking customers today across Africa and India. By leveraging the rapid adoption of smartphones, machine learning, and other technologies, Branch is pioneering new ways to deliver access and value to those overlooked by traditional banks. From instant loans to market-leading investment yields, Branch offers a variety of products designed to empower our customers financially.

Led by the co-founders of Kiva.org and a key product leader from PayPal, Branch has raised over $100 million from leading Silicon Valley investors, including Andreessen Horowitz and Visa. With over 32 million downloads, Branch stands as one of the most popular finance apps globally.

Job Overview

Since launching in India in early 2019, Branch has experienced rapid growth. In 2020, we are expanding our Engineering team in India to accelerate our success. This new team will closely collaborate with our engineering teams based in the United States, Nigeria, and Kenya to enhance our existing products and develop new offerings.

In this role, you will partner with our Product and Data Science teams to design and maintain various technologies, including our API backend, credit scoring and underwriting systems, payment integrations, and operational tools. You will face intriguing technical challenges, from managing complex financial systems to creatively leveraging data sources for our algorithmic credit model.

At Branch, we're passionate about our customers, fearless in facing challenges, and driven by data. Our engineering team fosters bottom-up innovation and decentralized decision-making, believing that great ideas can emerge from anyone. We are committed to creating an environment where everyone feels empowered to propose solutions to the challenges we encounter and are looking for individuals who thrive in a fast-paced, innovative, and customer-focused environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop customer-facing and internal products and APIs, ensuring best practices in security and performance.
• Influence and shape the company's technical and product roadmap, providing timely inputs and owning key outcomes.
• Collaborate with peers across functions to identify growth opportunities and necessary systems.
• Mentor and guide junior engineers in their growth and development.
• Scale backend services to accommodate increasing traffic and complexity.

Minimum Requirements

• 8+ years of experience designing, coding, and shipping backend software for web-based or mobile products.
• Experience coordinating with various stakeholders and company leadership on critical decisions and technical direction.
• Strong knowledge of software development fundamentals, including distributed systems, data storage, and agile practices.
• Proficient in coding and shipping quality products efficiently.
• Functional knowledge of other technical areas such as Android, Machine Learning, DevOps, etc.
• Pragmatic with a balanced understanding of technology and product needs.
• Highly entrepreneurial with a proactive approach to solving problems.
• Excellent collaborator and communicator, knowing that startups are a team sport.
• Excited about working in a distributed team environment with colleagues worldwide.

Why Join Us?

• Engage in a mission-driven, fast-paced, and entrepreneurial environment.
• Receive a competitive salary and equity package.
• Enjoy a collaborative and flat company culture.
• Work remotely with occasional options for in-person collaboration.
• Benefit from fully-paid Group Medical Insurance and Personal Accidental Insurance.
• Take advantage of unlimited paid time off, including personal leave, bereavement leave, and sick leave.
• Enjoy fully paid parental leave—6 months for maternity and 3 months for paternity.
• Receive a monthly work-from-home stipend and a one-time home office setup budget.
• Have access to a $500 annual professional development budget.
• Participate in discretionary trips to our global offices, along with travel medical insurance.
• Join team meals and social events, both virtual and in-person.

Branch International is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate in employment on any prohibited basis. We seek more than just qualifications; if you're unsure about meeting the criteria, we encourage you to apply