Engineering Lead – KYC (Know your customer)

💰 Up to 43,000 AED per month + benefits

I am working with a leading Fintech in the UAE who are looking for an Engineering Lead to join them here in Dubai. The ideal candidate will own and drive the development, evolution, and scale of their Identity & KYC platform. You will lead the strategy and execution of systems that power user onboarding, identity verification, KYC/AML checks, and compliance workflows, ensuring their platform is secure, compliant, scalable, and delivers a seamless user experience.

This is a high-impact role at the intersection of Product, Risk, Operations, and Legal, where you will shape the future of identity verification and compliance across their business.

What You Will Do:

• Define and execute the architectural vision and roadmap for identity, KYC, and verification systems.
• Lead engineering efforts for user onboarding, identity proofing, document OCR, biometric checks, AML screening, and account verification workflows.
• Build a scalable, pluggable platform integrating with third-party verification vendors while ensuring compliance with regional and international regulations (e.g., AML/CFT, GDPR, eKYC).
• Manage and mentor a team of engineering managers, architects, and ICs across backend, mobile, and security teams.
• Establish security, observability, and incident response best practices for sensitive identity workflows.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Product, Risk, Legal, and Operations teams to align roadmap and launch new KYC features globally.
• Oversee vendor evaluations and partnerships for biometric ID, OCR, AML, and risk scoring systems.
• Drive reliable, timely delivery of new identity features and compliance updates while maintaining high availability (99.9%+ uptime).

What You Will Need:

• 10+ years of engineering experience, including 3-5 years in leadership roles.
• Deep knowledge of identity verification, user onboarding, or KYC/AML systems.
• Experience with APIs for document OCR, biometric verification, AML screening, and fraud detection.
• Strong system design skills for high-availability, privacy-first, auditable systems.
• Familiarity with compliance frameworks such as GDPR, PCI DSS, SOC 2, FATF, or local eKYC regulations.
• Proven track record leading technical teams through scale, complexity, and regulatory change.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

Nice to Have:

• Experience in regulated financial services, crypto, or telecom identity systems.
• Knowledge of modular identity frameworks (DID, verifiable credentials, reusable KYC).
• Experience in markets with fragmented ID infrastructure (e.g., Africa, Southeast Asia).

Please apply to be contacted with further information.

Salt is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy.