Architect

About the role

You will serve as the primary architectural authority for the Payments and OTC portfolio at Luno, responsible for ensuring the technical integrity and consistency of systems that facilitate global money movement. This role involves high-level design, strategic influence, and cross-team collaboration rather than hands-on software development. You will work closely with product managers, engineering teams, and leadership to define and maintain the architecture standards that support scalable, secure, and compliant financial services. Your expertise will guide the evolution of the platform, ensuring it meets current and future business needs while adhering to regulatory and security requirements. This position offers an opportunity to shape the technical direction of critical payment systems used by millions of users across different regions.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Maintain a comprehensive and up-to-date map of the portfolio systems, including domain models, technical contracts, and interdependencies, to support effective decision-making and system evolution.
• Author high-level architectural designs for new features and initiatives, ensuring alignment with business goals, scalability, security, and compliance standards.
• Provide constructive feedback on technical designs created by engineering teams, guiding best practices and architectural consistency across projects.
• Document critical architectural decisions, including the rationale behind them, to facilitate long-term maintainability and knowledge sharing within the organization.
• Collaborate with product managers, engineering leads, and other stakeholders to define the scope of features and ensure architectural constraints are considered during planning.
• Act as a technical representative during commercial discussions with banking partners, payment providers, and other external vendors, ensuring integration points and technical requirements are clearly defined and feasible.
• Standardize payment orchestration, settlement, and reconciliation processes across different systems to enable repeatable, scalable, and reliable integrations with banking and payment providers.
• Oversee the migration of payment experiences to a Flutter-based mobile architecture, ensuring smooth transition and consistent user experience across platforms.
• Incorporate compliance, security, and data protection requirements into the architecture from the outset, working closely with security teams and compliance officers.
• Promote the effective use of AI tools within design workflows and product development to enhance efficiency and innovation.
• Coordinate with the broader Luno architecture community to maintain platform-wide consistency, share best practices, and ensure adherence to architectural standards.
• Support the development of technical documentation, standards, and guidelines to foster a strong architectural discipline within the organization.
• Participate in technical reviews, risk assessments, and architecture governance processes to ensure quality and alignment with strategic goals.
• Stay informed about emerging technologies, industry trends, and regulatory changes that could impact the architecture and advise on their adoption or mitigation.
• Mentor and guide engineering teams on architectural best practices, fostering a culture of technical excellence and continuous improvement.
• Contribute to strategic planning and technical roadmaps for the Payments and OTC systems, aligning architecture evolution with business growth and innovation.
• Engage with internal and external stakeholders to understand evolving needs and translate them into scalable, robust architectural solutions.
• Support incident investigations and root cause analysis related to system architecture issues, providing insights for future improvements.

Requirements

• Proven experience architecting high-scale, consumer-facing distributed systems, ideally within financial services or regulated industries.
• Strong background in backend architecture, including microservices, event-driven patterns, API design, and domain modeling.
• Proficiency with at least one major cloud provider, preferably AWS, with experience designing cloud-native solutions.
• Extensive experience with payment systems, including settlement, reconciliation, and integration with banking partners and payment providers.
• Ability to guide client-side architecture for web and mobile platforms, ensuring seamless integration and user experience.
• Background as a software engineer in a modern programming language, with a good understanding of software development practices.
• Experience working within regulated industries, designing systems that meet strict compliance and security standards.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to effectively translate complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a focus on scalable and reliable system design.
• BSc in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent professional experience.
• Ability to work collaboratively across teams and influence technical direction at a senior level.
• Experience with technical documentation, architecture diagrams, and standards development.
• Knowledge of security best practices and data protection regulations relevant to financial systems.
• Familiarity with AI tools and their application in design and development workflows is a plus.

Nice to have

• Experience with OTC or trading systems, including order management, trade execution, and settlement processes.
• Proficiency with Flutter, especially in the context of mobile application development and migration.
• Knowledge of regulatory frameworks affecting financial technology, such as AML, KYC, and ITAR compliance.
• Experience working in a fast-paced, high-growth environment with evolving technical requirements.
• Familiarity with DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, and automation tools to support architecture deployment and monitoring.

Skills & tools

• AWS cloud platform
• Flutter for mobile development
• Event-driven architecture principles
• Microservices architecture
• API design and management
• Domain-driven design and modeling
• AI-assisted design tools and workflows
• Security best practices and data protection standards
• System documentation and architecture diagramming tools

Practical notes

• Benefits include private medical insurance, a retirement fund, and risk benefits to support your well-being.
• Leave policies feature six months of primary caregiver leave, paw-ternity leave, and the option to purchase five additional leave days to suit personal needs.
• The company emphasizes professional development, supporting learning through platforms like Learnably and other educational resources.
• Employees enjoy zero-fee access to Luno Instant Buy, enabling cost-effective trading and investment.
• For those working from the office, free lunch and snacks are provided to foster a collaborative environment.
• The role involves on-site work at the Cape Town or Johannesburg offices, with a flexible work policy that encourages reachable remote work.
• The position requires working closely with cross-functional teams, including product, engineering, compliance, and security, to deliver robust payment solutions.
• The company maintains a strong focus on security, compliance, and data privacy, aligning with industry standards and regulations.
• Luno promotes a culture of innovation, continuous learning, and technical excellence, encouraging team members to stay updated with emerging technologies.
• The role offers an opportunity to influence the future of financial technology infrastructure at a global scale, impacting millions of users worldwide.
• The organization values diversity and inclusion, fostering a collaborative environment where different perspectives are welcomed.
• The position is ideal for experienced architects seeking to leverage their expertise in a dynamic, high-impact environment focused on financial services and digital currency.
• Regular engagement with industry trends and regulatory developments ensures the architecture remains compliant and competitive.
• The company provides ongoing support for career growth, including mentorship, training, and participation in strategic initiatives.
• The role involves a significant amount of strategic planning, technical leadership, and cross-team coordination to achieve long-term goals.
• The successful candidate will be a key contributor to the company's mission of making financial services accessible, secure, and scalable across the globe.