Role in brief
Circle is looking for a Business Development Director to build partnerships for Arc, their enterprise blockchain platform, specifically for "Earn" applications. This role involves leading strategy, deal execution, and product influence. It suits someone with extensive experience in fintech business development and a strong background in complex partnership negotiations, particularly within the crypto or stablecoin space.
About the role
This role focuses on expanding Circle's Arc platform by identifying and securing key business partnerships, particularly for "Earn" use cases. The Director will be responsible for defining the strategy for partner engagement, from initial discovery to deal execution and post-launch performance. This involves working with various financial entities like fintechs, neobanks, and exchanges to integrate Arc's offerings.
A core aspect of the position is shaping the product direction through insights gained from partner interactions and market needs. The Director will lead efforts to define target segments, establish partner tiers, and create repeatable processes for engaging with partners. Success in this role means driving significant growth for Arc through strategic alliances and effectively translating partner feedback into product requirements.
The role requires a leader who can navigate high-level discussions with founders and C-suite executives, representing Arc at industry events. It involves a mix of strategic planning, hands-on deal sourcing and closing, and cross-functional collaboration to ensure successful integration and performance of partnerships. The ideal candidate will thrive in a dynamic environment, driving execution with internal teams.
The listed salary range for this position is $212,500 to $272,500.
Skills that matter here
- business development: This role centers on identifying, cultivating, and securing strategic partnerships to expand Arc's ecosystem.
- strategic partnerships: The Director will be responsible for sourcing, structuring, negotiating, and launching complex alliances with various financial institutions.
- fintech: Significant experience within fintech, neobank, or consumer finance environments is required to understand the target market and potential partners.
- crypto: Familiarity with crypto rails, stablecoins, and the broader digital asset landscape is essential for this role within Circle's Arc platform.
- negotiation: The role demands strong negotiation skills for high-stakes conversations with C-level stakeholders to finalize partnership agreements.
- GTM strategy: The Director will design segment-specific go-to-market motions and deal structures for new product offerings and partnerships.
Who this role suits
- Someone with over a decade of experience in business development or strategic partnerships, specifically within the fintech or crypto sectors.
- A professional who excels at initiating and closing complex deals, demonstrating a proven track record in sourcing and structuring partnerships.
- An individual comfortable operating in ambiguous, fast-moving environments, capable of driving execution across different teams.
- A strong communicator and negotiator who can effectively engage with C-suite executives and represent the company externally.
From the employer
- Lead ecosystem development and business partnerships for Arc, focusing on 'Earn' use cases.
- Drive strategy, sourcing, and executing critical deals.
- Shape product direction in collaboration with senior leadership.
- Own distribution partner development with fintechs, neobanks, wallets, and centralized exchanges (CEXs).
- Run structured discovery to identify launch partners and constraints.
- Design segment-specific GTM motion and deal structures.
- Source and close partnerships, driving integration and post-launch performance.
- Define target segments, partner tiers, product offerings, and repeatable partner motions.
- Establish success metrics and forecasting tied to partner launches.
- Lead partner discovery and translate insights into GTM + product requirements.
- Design scalable commercial and operational deal frameworks.
- Navigate high-stakes conversations with founders and C-level stakeholders.
- Represent the project externally at key ecosystem forums, conferences, and partner events.
- 10+ years in business development, strategic partnerships, product partnerships, or ecosystem roles.
- Significant experience in fintech/neobank/consumer finance/wallet/exchange environments.
- Proven track record in sourcing, structuring, negotiating, and launching complex partnerships.
- Strong GTM design capability.
- Comfortable driving execution with cross-functional teams.
- Excellent communicator and negotiator at the C-suite level.
- High-agency operator who thrives in a fast-moving, ambiguous environment.
- Familiarity with crypto rails, stablecoins, and generative AI models.
- Willingness to travel up to 30%.
- Experience launching or scaling savings/yield/lending products in fintech.
- Competitive salary range: $212,500 - $272,500.
- Flexible work environment.
- Opportunity to work with a high-performing team.
- Encouragement of new ideas and stakeholder involvement.
Questions about this role
What is the remote work policy for this position?
This is a fully remote position.
What level of experience is required for this role?
Candidates should have 10 or more years of experience in business development, strategic partnerships, product partnerships, or ecosystem roles.
What is the salary range for this position?
The competitive salary range for this role is between $212,500 and $272,500.