Lead Analyst, Product Compliance

About the role

This role focuses on embedding compliance within Circle's product development and operations. The Lead Analyst will ensure that new and existing products adhere to regulatory expectations and internal frameworks, working closely with product, engineering, and operations teams from design through launch. A key aspect of the work involves leading risk assessments and defining control requirements to support domestic and international money movement capabilities.

The position also involves proactively identifying emerging compliance and operational risks, developing forward-looking control strategies, and helping to shape the compliance technologies that support Circle's evolving liquidity and payments infrastructure. This includes overseeing assessments for the Payments Pillar, covering compliance tooling, transaction traceability, scalability, governance, and regulatory alignment.

Success in this role means driving cross-functional collaboration across the Payments program, partnering with various departments including Legal, Policy, Security, and Engineering. The Lead Analyst will also be responsible for developing data-driven and AI-enabled compliance processes to enhance risk assessment efficiency and staying current with market and regulatory developments in decentralized finance and global payments infrastructure.

The salary for this position ranges from $140,000 to $185,000.

Skills that matter here

• Compliance: This role centers on ensuring products meet regulatory expectations and internal compliance frameworks throughout their lifecycle.
• Risk Management: The position requires leading risk assessments, defining control requirements, and identifying emerging compliance and operational risks.
• Payments: The role involves assessing compliance and operational risk within payment networks and regulated payment platforms, particularly for money movement and settlement capabilities.
• Blockchain: A deep understanding of virtual assets, blockchain/distributed ledger technology, and regulated digital asset payment models is essential.
• AI: The role includes developing data-driven and AI-enabled compliance processes to improve risk assessment velocity and efficiency.
• Financial Regulatory Compliance: Comprehensive knowledge of U.S. and global payments and financial regulatory compliance requirements is a core requirement.

Who this role suits

• A person with at least seven years of experience in compliance or risk management within fintech, crypto, or payments, including a minimum of three years in product compliance.
• Someone who possesses a comprehensive understanding of U.S. and global payments and financial regulatory compliance requirements.
• An individual familiar with the compliance implications of bank partnerships, payment intermediaries, and cross-border transaction flows.
• A professional who can effectively collaborate across diverse teams like Product, Engineering, Legal, and Risk.

From the employer

• Ensure products are designed, launched, and operated in alignment with regulatory expectations and internal compliance frameworks.
• Partner closely with product, engineering, and operations teams to embed compliance throughout the product lifecycle.
• Lead risk assessments, define and validate control requirements, and drive cross-functional readiness for domestic and cross-border money movement and settlement capabilities.
• Identify emerging compliance and operational risks, develop forward-looking control approaches, and help shape the compliance technologies needed to support Circle’s evolving liquidity and payments infrastructure.
• Oversee comprehensive assessments for the Payments Pillar, including compliance tooling, transaction traceability, scalability, governance, and regulatory alignment.
• Drive cross-functional collaboration across the Payments program by partnering with Product, Legal, Policy, Security, Enterprise Risk, Treasury, and Engineering.
• Develop data-driven and AI-enabled compliance processes to enhance risk assessment velocity and efficiency.
• Monitor market and regulatory developments in decentralized finance, programmable money, and global payments infrastructure.

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business, and/or risk management.
• 7+ years of experience in compliance, risk management, or related functions within a fintech, crypto, or payments company, including at least 3 years of product compliance experience.
• Comprehensive knowledge of U.S. and global payments and financial regulatory compliance requirements.
• Experience assessing compliance and operational risk in payment networks, managed payments products, or regulated payment platforms.
• Deep knowledge of virtual assets, blockchain/distributed ledger technology, and regulated digital asset payment models.
• Ability to work cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Legal, Policy, and Risk teams.
• Familiarity with the compliance implications of bank partnerships, payment intermediaries, network participants, and cross-border transaction flows.
• Experience or familiarity with AI tools such as Codex and Claude to support compliance or risk workflows.

• Competitive salary range of $140,000 - $185,000.
• Flexible work environment encouraging new ideas.
• Opportunity to work on innovative financial products and compliance technologies.