General Counsel

Blockstream was founded in 2014 by Dr. 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. We develop industry-leading Bitcoin self-custody solutions, Bitcoin-based financial products, second-layer scaling technologies, and enterprise-grade blockchain infrastructure.

### Legal & Strategic Leadership - Define, execute, and evolve the legal and compliance strategy consistent with Blockstream’s mission, risk tolerance, and business objectives - Advise the Board of Directors, executive leadership, and senior management on legal, regulatory, and governance issues - Guide corporate governance, board processes, equity plans, capital raises, mergers & acquisitions, and restructurings - Provide legal support in the context of industry consortia and associations that Blockstream is involved in - Oversee external counsel selection and management and control legal budget, ensuring cost-efficient legal operations ### Commercial & Product Support - Oversee negotiation, drafting, and execution of complex commercial agreements (e.g. licensing, partnerships, APIs, custody, token issuance, SaaS, enterprise) - Support product teams with assessments of legal risk, regulatory compliance, and legal architecture for new features, protocols, token standards, sidechains, and integrations - Structure cross-border transactions and operations, including advising on jurisdictional compliance and entity structuring - Define and oversee legal aspects of the Blockstream’s IP protection ### Regulatory, Compliance & Risk - 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. - Oversee compliance programs for anti-money laundering (AML), sanctions, licensing, data protection/privacy (e.g. GDPR, CCPA), consumer protection, export controls, and security/compliance audits. - 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) ### Team Building & Operations - Hire, mentor, and develop legal, compliance, and contract teams - Build scalable legal infrastructure: policies, playbooks, templates, workflows, contract management tools, compliance frameworks, self-serve legal tooling - 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 ### Employment & HR Legal Support - Partner with the Director of People to ensure compliance with employment regulations across multiple jurisdictions - Support internal investigations, terminations, and employment-related disputes as needed

### Required Qualifications - 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 - Demonstrated experience serving as General Counsel, Deputy General Counsel, or senior legal executive in a fast-growing global organization - Deep expertise in commercial transactions, including drafting and negotiating complex agreements related to enterprise software, APIs, partnerships, licensing, custody, token issuance, infrastructure, and technology services - 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 - Proven ability to manage multi-jurisdictional legal and compliance matters across the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Asia - Experience building and scaling legal and compliance functions, including policies, processes, playbooks, and operational infrastructure - 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 partner cross-functionally with engineering, product, finance, security, operations, HR, and executive stakeholders - Excellent judgment, strategic thinking, communication, negotiation, and leadership skills - Ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving, ambiguous, and highly technical environment

### Nice To Haves (Preferred Qualifications) - 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 - Experience implementing legal technology tools, contract lifecycle management systems, and scalable self-service legal frameworks - Strong understanding of employment law and workforce compliance in globally distributed or remote-first organizations - Previous experience working in engineering-driven or infrastructure-focused technology companies - Interest in the future of financial infrastructure, cryptography, privacy-enhancing technologies, and decentralized systems

Blockstream is a Bitcoin and digital asset infrastructure company founded in 2014 that provides custody, treasury, and tokenization solutions. The company operates the Liquid Network, a Bitcoin sidechain, and offers products including hardware wallets, wallet applications, and enterprise-grade tools for managing digital assets.