Senior Counsel, Product

Senior Counsel, Product at Coinbase

Ready to be pushed beyond what you think you’re capable of? At Coinbase, our mission is to increase economic freedom in the world. It’s a massive, ambitious opportunity that demands the best of us, every day, as we build the emerging onchain platform — and with it, the future global financial system.

To achieve our mission, we’re seeking a very specific candidate. We want someone who is passionate about our mission and who believes in the power of crypto and blockchain technology to update the financial system. We want someone who is eager to leave their mark on the world, who relishes the pressure and privilege of working with high caliber colleagues, and who actively seeks feedback to keep leveling up. We want someone who will run towards, not away from, solving the company’s hardest problems.

Our work culture is intense and isn’t for everyone. But if you want to build the future alongside others who excel in their disciplines and expect the same from you, there’s no better place to be.

While many roles at Coinbase are remote-first, we are not remote-only. In-person participation is required throughout the year. Team and company-wide offsites are held multiple times annually to foster collaboration, connection, and alignment. Attendance is expected and fully supported.

We are seeking an exceptional attorney to join our Product Legal team, dedicated to supporting the Coinbase incubated Base Layer 2 blockchain. In this pivotal role, you will navigate complex, first-of-a-kind blockchain and Base related product initiatives. Your responsibilities will extend across the Base L2 ecosystem, from operational support to ensuring seamless integration and compliance of Coinbase integrated products and base-native products. Collaborating closely with other members of the Coinbase legal team, you will tackle a wide array of challenging matters that influence the landscape of blockchain technology and innovation.

What you’ll be doing (ie. job duties):

• As Base specific product legal counsel, you will help build the legal foundation to support Base’s onchain mission and strategy.
• Play a pivotal role in the grants ecosystem by overseeing legal processes related to funding and supporting innovative projects within the Base ecosystem.
• Facilitate the integration of both Coinbase and third party services and products in the Base ecosystem, ensuring they adhere to legal standards and regulatory expectations. This includes conducting due diligence, drafting compliance policies, and providing guidance on risk management related to Base product integration.
• Be a business partner, not just an attorney.
• Provide full product life-cycle counseling.
• Look around corners and creatively solve problems for the business as they plan, build, and execute on their product roadmap.
• Identify issues that may fall outside your expertise, driving resolution by partnering with other members of the Coinbase legal team and outside counsel.
• Work cross-departmentally, including with stakeholders such as Compliance, Communications, Finance, Tax, Security, Enterprise Risk Management, Engineering, Data, Analytics, Corporate Development, and members of Coinbase’s leadership team.
• Respond promptly to a wide range of complex legal requests and coordinate closely with Legal department colleagues to ensure the swift delivery of smart, practical advice.
• Operate in a fast paced, demanding environment and pivot quickly to meet leadership's needs.
• Scale the advice you provide, so that you can do more with less and grow efficiently with the business.

What we look for in you (ie. job requirements):

• Currently licensed in a U.S. state. J.D. or equivalent, minimum of 5 years of legal experience
• You have strong, substantive practice and practical experience working in crypto / web3 / defi / protocols / blockchain
• You have Financial technology experience preferred but not required
• You have experience counseling product teams in launching consumer or developer-facing technology products and services
• You have a strong interest or experience in digital currency, blockchain technology, and innovative constructs pioneered by decentralized finance.
• You have an understanding of the legal and regulatory considerations affecting crypto protocols and onchain products, including how decentralized architectures and onchain workflows impact product design and governance.
• You have experience with build-outs to support Anti Money Laundering (AML)/Know-your-customer (KYC) requirements, and regulated e-money and money transmission obligations under banking laws.
• You have proven problem-solving, communication and interpersonal skills.
• You exercise excellent legal judgment with analytic rigor, prudential risk assessment, and a balance of realizable creativity and pragmatism. You are comfortable with risk-adjusted thinking, and can understand when interpretive flexibility is warranted.
• You are team-oriented and collaborative, you bring cross-departmental colleagues to the table, and build your practice to enable your clients to successfully build and launch crypto products at Coinbase.

Nice to haves:

• Technology/engineering background (Bachelors of science)
• Experience working with protocols, rollups, Layer2s (bitcoin core team, ethereum foundation, polygon, solana, optimism Req #: P75838

Key skills/competency:

• Blockchain Law
• Crypto Regulation
• Product Counsel
• Fintech Legal
• AML/KYC Compliance
• Web3 Protocols
• Risk Management
• Legal Strategy
• Decentralized Finance (DeFi)
• Onchain Governance