Head of Security & Risk

Location: Remote - US Remote (Preference for NYC based candidates)

Remote | Full-time

Compensation: $200K - $250K

Our client operates shared financial infrastructure designed to enable businesses and institutional partners to launch and manage branded stablecoins and advanced digital asset issuance stacks. The platform provides fully interoperable, liquid on-chain solutions that grant businesses programmable control over payment ecosystems while meeting the stringent operational demands of regulated financial institutions.

To support rapid growth and expanding institutional partnerships, our client is seeking a sharp, execution-focused Head of Security & Risk. This is a foundational, individual contributor (IC) role at a critical inflection point for the organization. In this position, the Head of Security & Risk will build and own the information security and enterprise risk management functions from the ground up.

Reporting directly to the Deputy Chief Operating Officer, the individual will serve as the organization's primary security authority—establishing the enterprise risk framework, driving information security compliance, leading incident response and security operations, and managing institutional due diligence requests. This role requires close collaboration across engineering, product, legal, business development, and operations teams to ensure a proactive, audit-ready, and defensible security posture.

Key Responsibilities:

• Build and Own Enterprise Risk Management (ERM): Design and execute an enterprise risk management program from scratch. Oversee security, operational, regulatory, and counterparty risks, including maintaining the risk register, leading annual risk assessments, performing scenario analyses, and establishing an escalation framework across all legal entities.
• Lead Information Security Compliance & Certifications: Drive the compliance certification roadmap across frameworks such as SOC 2 and ISO 27001. Direct non-technical workstreams, including policy drafting, auditor coordination, vendor risk evaluations, third-party SaaS reviews, and periodic access reviews to maintain continuous audit readiness.
• Establish Security Operations & Response Frameworks: Design and maintain the Information Security Management System (ISMS), security policies, and incident response frameworks. Manage external security vendor relationships, lead tabletop exercises across Incident Response (IR), Business Continuity Planning (BCP), and Disaster Recovery (DR) scenarios, and select external security advisory firms for on-call support.
• Manage Partner Information Security Due Diligence: Act as the primary point of contact for institutional partner security due diligence and inbound questionnaires. Build and maintain a reusable compliance documentation package and collaborate with legal counsel on security representations within commercial agreements.
• Drive Information Security Culture & Awareness: Develop and own the security awareness training curriculum across all departments. Promote a proactive security culture across engineering, product, legal, and operational units.

Qualifications

• Experience: 7–10 years of progressive experience in information security, risk management, GRC, or compliance operations, ideally within fintech, digital asset/crypto infrastructure, or B2B SaaS sectors.
• Compliance Expertise: Demonstrated track record of building compliance programs from the ground up, including direct, hands-on ownership of full SOC 2 audits and ISO 27001 implementation/maintenance.
• Technical & GRC Tooling: Hands-on experience with modern GRC automation platforms (e.g., Vanta, Drata), cloud environments (AWS preferred), and infrastructure security integration within DevOps/IaaS workflows.
• Vendor & Audit Management: Proven experience managing external audit relationships, penetration testing partners, and compliance vendors end-to-end.
• Location: Ability to work multiple days per week on-site in the primary hub located in New York City.

Skills & Core Attributes

• Proactive Risk Mindset: Ability to evaluate risks through likelihood, impact, and mitigation, translating technical and regulatory complexities into clear, business-focused solutions.
• Process Rigor & Documentation: Exceptional organizational skills with a strong focus on maintaining pristine documentation, evidence collection, and tracking systems.
• High Ownership & Adaptability: A self-starter capable of navigating ambiguity, driving end-to-end projects, and balancing strategic planning with tactical execution.
• Strong Stakeholder Communication: Ability to build strong relationships across engineering, legal, product, and business units by promoting security as a shared operational standard.

Preferred / Nice to Haves

• Certifications: Professional security certifications such as CISSP, CISM, CRISC, CySA+, or Cloud+.
• Digital Asset Familiarity: Experience with digital assets, stablecoins, smart contract security risks, and on-chain monitoring tools (e.g., Chainalysis, BlockAid).
• Regulatory Knowledge: Exposure to emerging digital asset frameworks such as the GENIUS Act, MiCA, DORA, or global financial services regulations.
• Multi-Entity Structure: Prior experience operating within multi-entity corporate structures (e.g., US entities, Cayman HoldCos, Swiss Foundations).