Innovation Architect / Emerging Technology Lead

Location: Brussels (Hybrid)

Contract: Freelance / Consultancy

Rate: €1,000-€1,200 per day

Shape the Future of Financial Market Infrastructure

We are seeking an experienced Innovation Architect / Emerging Technology Lead to help identify, evaluate and validate the technologies that will shape the future of financial services and market infrastructure.

This is a unique opportunity to operate at the forefront of technology innovation, working across business and technology teams to explore emerging trends, develop proof-of-concepts, and influence strategic technology decisions.

You will play a key role in assessing new technologies, engaging with fintechs and industry partners, and transforming innovative ideas into tangible business opportunities.

The Opportunity

As an Innovation Architect, you will act as a bridge between business strategy, emerging technology, and enterprise architecture.

You will be responsible for identifying opportunities across areas such as:

• Artificial Intelligence and Generative AI

• Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) and Tokenisation

• Cloud-Native Architectures

• Data and Event-Driven Platforms

• Digital Assets and Emerging Financial Technologies

• Automation and Next-Generation Engineering Practices

Working closely with business stakeholders, architects, engineers and external partners, you will assess the viability of new concepts, design innovative solutions, and deliver proof-of-concept initiatives that demonstrate measurable business value.

Key Responsibilities

• Evaluate emerging technologies, market trends and industry innovations.

• Identify opportunities to create business value through technology.

• Partner with business stakeholders to explore and shape new products, services and capabilities.

• Design and lead proof-of-concept and incubation initiatives.

• Define target architectures and technology approaches for innovative solutions.

• Engage with fintechs, technology vendors and external innovation ecosystems.

• Assess technical feasibility, scalability, security and regulatory considerations.

• Present findings, recommendations and business cases to senior stakeholders.

• Support the transition of successful PoCs into delivery and product teams.

• Maintain awareness of evolving regulatory, market and competitive developments across Europe.

What We’re Looking For

Architecture & Engineering

• Extensive experience as a Solution Architect, Lead Architect, Principal Architect or Innovation Architect.

• Strong expertise in cloud-native architecture, ideally within Microsoft Azure environments.

• Deep understanding of Kubernetes, container platforms and microservices architectures.

• Experience designing modern integration solutions including APIs, event-driven architectures and distributed systems.

• Strong knowledge of data platforms, data architecture and modern engineering practices.

• Experience with DevOps, CI/CD, Infrastructure as Code and cloud operating models.

• Understanding of security-by-design, resilience, compliance and governance principles.

Innovation & Emerging Technology

• Experience evaluating and adopting emerging technologies within enterprise environments.

• Exposure to AI, Generative AI, DLT, tokenisation, digital assets, automation or other disruptive technologies.

• Experience leading innovation programmes, incubators, labs or proof-of-concept initiatives.

• Ability to rapidly assess new technologies and determine business applicability.

Stakeholder Management

• Strong consulting and influencing skills.

• Ability to communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.

• Experience engaging with senior business stakeholders and executive leadership.

• Comfortable operating in ambiguous environments and driving initiatives from concept to execution.

Ideal Background

We are particularly interested in professionals who have worked as:

• Innovation Architect

• Principal Solution Architect

• Emerging Technology Lead

• Enterprise Architect

• Technology Strategist

• Lead Consultant (Technology & Innovation)

• Cloud Transformation Architect

Experience within financial services, capital markets, fintech or regulated environments would be advantageous.

Why Apply?

This is an opportunity to move beyond traditional architecture and become a key contributor to the future technology strategy of a leading financial institution.

You’ll have the freedom to explore emerging technologies, engage with innovative partners, build new concepts, and influence strategic decisions that could shape the next generation of financial market infrastructure

*Rates depend on experience and client requirements