Mobile Digital Payments Architect

hackajob is collaborating with Vanguard to connect them with exceptional professionals for this role.

We are seeking a Mobile Product Architect, Digital Payments to lead the strategy, architecture, and delivery of next-generation mobile payment experiences for Vanguard Cash Plus clients. This role combines deep expertise in mobile technologies with a strong understanding of digital payment ecosystems, including debit card platforms, digital wallets, real-time payments, tokenization, payment security, and regulatory requirements.

As an architect, you will define the mobile payments architecture roadmap, collaborate with product and engineering teams, evaluate emerging technologies, Vendor SDK capabilities, and drive innovative solutions that deliver secure, scalable, and seamless payment experiences across iOS and Android platforms.

Core Responsibilities

• Define and drive the architecture strategy and product roadmap for digital payments products and platforms, ensuring alignment with business objectives, enterprise architecture standards, and technology roadmaps.
• Design scalable, secure, and resilient solutions supporting mobile payment capabilities, including digital wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay), debit card payment experiences, account funding and transfers, card controls, tokenization services, and push provisioning capabilities.
• Partner with Product Managers, Engineering Leads, UX teams, Security, Risk, Compliance, Operations, and business stakeholders to translate requirements into architecture designs, technical roadmaps, and delivery plans.
• Collaborate with enterprise architects, product teams, technology experts, and vendors to ensure solutions align with enterprise standards, target architectures, and long-term technology strategies.
• Lead integration architecture across payment processors, sponsor banks, card networks, digital wallet providers, and other third-party financial technology partners.
• Serve as the senior technical authority for assigned products and platforms, assessing risks, resolving complex technical challenges, and guiding teams through architecture and implementation decisions.
• Lead architecture reviews, proof-of-concept initiatives, feasibility studies, and technology evaluations to validate solutions, reduce implementation risk, and inform build-versus-buy decisions.
• Establish and promote mobile architecture standards, design patterns, API strategies, engineering best practices, and governance processes to ensure quality, security, and consistency across teams.
• Track emerging technologies, payment innovations, and industry trends to identify opportunities for modernization, innovation, and competitive advantage.
• Prepare and present architecture recommendations, product documentation, technology roadmaps, and business cases to technical stakeholders and executive leadership.
• Provide technical leadership, mentoring, and architectural guidance across multiple delivery teams, fostering engineering excellence and organizational growth. Contribute hands-on when needed through design reviews, prototype development, reference implementations, special projects, and other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Minimum of eight years related work experience, with at least three years of technology architect experience.
• Undergraduate degree or equivalent combination of training and experience. Graduate degree preferred.

Preferred Qualifications

• Strong experience designing and delivering mobile applications for iOS and Android platforms.
• Deep understanding of digital payments architecture, payment processing, and money movement systems.
• Experience with mobile application frameworks such as React Native, Swift, Kotlin, Flutter, or equivalent technologies.
• Strong understanding of authentication, authorization, encryption, tokenization, and fraud prevention concepts.
• Experience leading architecture governance, solution reviews, and cross-functional technical initiatives.
• Hands-on experience with digital wallet integrations, including Apple Pay and Google Pay.
• Experience with payment processors, core banking platforms, sponsor bank integrations, or card processing ecosystems such as Marqeta, Fiserv, Visa DPS, or similar platforms.
• Experience with AWS cloud services and cloud-native architecture patterns.
• Experience developing architecture roadmaps and presenting technology strategies to senior leadership.

Special Factors

Sponsorship

Vanguard is offering visa sponsorship for this position.

About Vanguard

At Vanguard, we don't just have a mission-we're on a mission.

To work for the long-term financial wellbeing of our clients. To lead through product and services that transform our clients' lives. To learn and develop our skills as individuals and as a team. From Malvern to Melbourne, our mission drives us forward and inspires us to be our best.

How We Work

Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.