Blockstream

General Counsel

Menlo Park

Sponsorship not specifiedDetected 54 days ago

ComplianceNegotiationM&AContract ManagementCorporate LawIntellectual PropertyEmployment LawLeadershipCommunicationCollaborationMentoring

About the role

Adam Back https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Back and a group of fellow cryptographers and engineers who are passionate about Bitcoin and its potential to change the world.
Today, Blockstream is the leading Bitcoin company, providing cutting-edge infrastructure solutions for enterprises, institutions, and individual Bitcoin users.
The ideal candidate combines deep legal expertise with strong business judgment and thrives in high-growth, fast-moving, and highly technical environments.

Provide legal support in the context of industry consortia and associations that Blockstream is involved in
Support product teams with assessments of legal risk, regulatory compliance, and legal architecture for new features, protocols, token standards, sidechains, and integrations
Drive strategy for regulatory engagement in multiple jurisdictions (e.g. U.S., Canada, EU, Asia) in crypto, securities, fintech, payments, custody, data privacy, and related domains.
Monitor emerging regulatory, policy, and legislative developments in crypto, blockchain, and fintech, and lead internal responses or adaptations.
Manage legal risk and crisis response (e.g. litigation, investigations, disputes, IP enforcement, regulatory enforcement actions)
Hire, mentor, and develop legal, compliance, and contract teams

Juris Doctor (JD) or equivalent law degree from an accredited institution and active membership in good standing with at least one state/provincial bar association
12+ years of legal experience, including substantial in-house leadership experience within fintech, cryptocurrency, blockchain, financial services, payments, SaaS, or other highly regulated technology industries
Strong knowledge of global regulatory frameworks affecting crypto, blockchain, fintech, securities, payments, AML/KYC, sanctions, privacy, and digital assets
Experience advising executive leadership teams and Boards of Directors on corporate governance, legal strategy, risk management, financing activities, mergers & acquisitions, and organizational structuring
Demonstrated ability to oversee litigation, investigations, regulatory inquiries, disputes, and crisis management matters
Experience managing outside counsel relationships and legal budgets effectively in a high-growth environment
Strong understanding of intellectual property strategy, technology licensing, and product counseling for emerging technologies
Ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving, ambiguous, and highly technical environment

Prior experience in the cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, blockchain infrastructure, or digital asset ecosystem
Strong familiarity with Bitcoin technologies, sidechains, tokenization frameworks, custody infrastructure, and decentralized protocols
Experience engaging directly with regulators, policymakers, industry associations, and standards bodies related to crypto or fintech
Background supporting international entity structuring, cross-border operations, and global expansion initiatives
Experience overseeing compliance programs involving GDPR, CCPA, SOC audits, export controls, and financial crime prevention frameworks
Familiarity with open-source licensing models and legal considerations related to protocol development and distributed technologies
Experience supporting capital markets activities, private financings, venture financing rounds, or institutional investment transactions
Demonstrated success hiring, mentoring, and leading high-performing legal and compliance teams across multiple jurisdictions

Promote cross-functional collaboration with engineering, security, product, finance, operations, and marketing groups
Establish KPIs and reporting for the legal function; balance agility with legal rigor in a fast-moving environment

Guide corporate governance, board processes, equity plans, capital raises, mergers & acquisitions, and restructurings

This listing is sourced directly from Blockstream's careers page and normalized into a canonical job model.