Backend Software Engineer

Branch Overview

Imagine a world where every person has improved access to financial services. People could start new businesses, pay for their children’s education, cover their emergency medical bills – the possibilities to improve life 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 technology, Branch is pioneering new ways to improve access and value for those overlooked by banks. From instant loans to market-leading investment yields, Branch offers a variety of products that help our customers be financially empowered.

Branch’s mission-driven team is led by the co-founders of Kiva.org and one of the earliest product leaders of PayPal. Branch has raised over $100 million from leading Silicon Valley investors, including Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Visa. 
 
With over 32 million downloads, Branch is one of the most popular finance apps in the world.

Job Overview

Branch launched in India in early 2019 and has seen rapid adoption and growth. In 2020 we are building out a full Engineering team in India to accelerate our success here. This team will work closely with our engineering team (based in the United States, Nigeria, and Kenya) to strengthen the capabilities of our existing product and build out new product lines for the company.

You will work closely with our Product and Data Science teams to design and maintain multiple technologies, including our API backend, credit scoring and underwriting systems, payments integrations, and operations tools. We face numerous interesting technical challenges ranging from maintaining complex financial systems to accessing and processing creative data sources for our algorithmic credit model. 

As a company, we are passionate about our customers, fearless in the face of barriers, and driven by data. As an engineering team, we value bottom-up innovation and decentralized decision-making: We believe the best ideas can come from anyone in the company, and we are working hard to create an environment where everyone feels empowered to propose solutions to the challenges we face. We are looking for individuals who thrive in a fast-moving, innovative, and customer-focused setting.
 

Here are some things you’ll do

• Build customer facing and internal products and APIs with industry best practices around security and performance in mind.
• Influence and shape the company’s technical and product roadmap by providing timely and accurate inputs and owning various outcomes.
• Collaborate with peers in other functional areas (Android, Machine Learning, Data, Devops, etc.) to identify potential growth areas and systems needed.
• Guide and mentor other younger engineers around you.
• Scaling our backend services to ever-growing levels of traffic and complexity.

Minimum Requirements

• You have strong experience (8+ years) of designing, coding, and shipping backend software for web-based or mobile products.
• Experience coordinating and collaborating with various business stakeholders and company leadership on critical functional decisions and technical roadmap.
• You have strong knowledge of software development fundamentals, including relevant background in computer science fundamentals, distributed systems, data storage, and agile development methodologies.
• You are able to utlize your knowledge and expertise to code and ship quality products in a timely manner.
• You have functional knowledge of other technical areas such as Android, Machine Learning, DevOps, etc and can contribute to related discussions and decisions.
• You are pragmatic and combine a strong understanding of technology and product needs to arrive at the best solution for a given problem.
• You are highly entrepreneurial and thrive in taking ownership of your own impact. You take the initiative to solve problems before they arise.
• You are an excellent collaborator & communicator. You know that startups are a team sport. You listen to others, aren’t afraid to speak your mind and always try to ask the right questions. 
• You are excited by the prospect of working in a distributed team and company, working with teammates from all over the world.
   

Benefits of Joining

• Mission-driven, fast-paced and entrepreneurial environment
• Competitive salary and equity package
• A collaborative and flat company culture
• Remote first, with the option to work in-person occasionally
• Fully-paid Group Medical Insurance and Personal Accidental Insurance
• Unlimited paid time off including personal leave, bereavement leave, sick leave
• Fully paid parental leave - 6 months maternity leave and 3 months paternity leave
• Monthly WFH stipend alongside a one time home office set-up budget
• $500 Annual professional development budget 
• Discretionary trips to our offices across the globe, with global travel medical insurance 
• Team meals and social events- Virtual and In-person

Branch International is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The company does not and will not discriminate in employment on any basis prohibited by applicable law. We’re looking for more than just qualifications -- so if you’re unsure that you meet the criteria, please do not hesitate to apply!