Engineering Lead, Scale

Airwallex4 days ago

Location

UK - London

Type

Full Time

Salary

GBP 100,000 – 150,000

Level

Lead

Role

Engineering Lead

Posted

Apr 15, 2026

Full TimeLead

The role

Summary

Airwallex seeks an experienced Engineering Lead for its Scale Platform team in London, responsible for building critical infrastructure for a global embedded finance platform. The role requires strong technical leadership, system design expertise, and the ability to manage and grow high-performing engineering teams while driving technical excellence.

What you'll do

Team Leadership: Manage, coach, and develop engineering team through performance management, feedback, and career development initiatives

Technical Direction: Set strategic technical direction for scalable and reliable backend systems, collaborating with senior engineers on architecture and design

System Quality: Maintain high standards for system design, code quality, testing, and operational excellence across the platform

Continuous Improvement: Drive improvements in system reliability, observability, security, and developer productivity

Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work with product, design, compliance, sales, and engineering leaders to align technical execution with business priorities

Solution Architecture: Translate complex enterprise customer requirements into pragmatic and scalable technical solutions

What we look for

Technical

Backend DevelopmentStrong experience with Java/Spring Boot and backend system development

System DesignProven expertise in designing and operating large-scale, distributed production systems

ArchitectureStrong object-oriented design fundamentals and ability to balance abstraction, simplicity, and development speed

Education

Computer Science/EngineeringBachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or equivalent practical experience preferred

Experience

Leadership ExperienceMinimum 8 years of software engineering experience, including at least 1 year in a people leadership role

MentorshipDemonstrated ability to mentor engineers and lead technical execution

Skills

Required skills

JavaExpert-level Java development skills with Spring Boot framework

System DesignAdvanced system design and architectural design capabilities

LeadershipStrong people management and technical leadership skills

Nice to have

Fintech ExperiencePrevious work in payments, financial services, or regulated technology domains

Cloud PlatformsExperience with AWS, GCP, or other cloud infrastructure platforms

Database TechnologiesFamiliarity with PostgreSQL, Redis, and Kafka

Compensation & benefits

Salary

GBP 100,000 – 150,000 (annual)

Stock options

Available

Benefits

Competitive Compensation

Salary range of £100,000 - £150,000 with potential bonus

Equity Compensation

Restricted Stock Units (RSU) as part of total compensation package

Interview process

1
Initial Screening — Resume and background review by recruitment team
2
Technical Interview — In-depth technical discussion focusing on system design, leadership, and engineering experience
3
Leadership Assessment — Evaluation of people management skills and technical leadership capabilities
4
Final Interview — Meeting with senior engineering leadership to assess overall fit and alignment with company values