Principal Engineer (Payments Investigations)

About this role: Wells Fargo is seeking a highly skilled Principal Engineer to play a pivotal role in advancing our Payment Operations technology landscape. This role is an opportunity to shape mission-critical systems that support Wires Operations and Payment Investigations, a cornerstone of our global payments infrastructure. From ACH (Automated Clearing House) and Instant Payments to Lockbox and ISO 20022 (International Organization for Standardization) modernization, our Payment Services Operations are at the forefront of innovation and transformation. As part of this team, you’ll collaborate with top-tier engineers, risk and compliance experts, and business leaders to deliver secure, scalable, and high-performing solutions that impact millions of transactions daily. This leader will be part of a technology led transformation to automate thousands of manual test scripts to reduce testing timelines. Additionally, this pro-active associate will drive the modernization, consolidation, and automation of the Payments Investigations platform to increase productivity for our Operations partners. If you're passionate about engineering excellence, automation, and making a tangible impact in financial services, this is the role for you. In this role, you will: Act as an advisor to leadership to develop or influence applications, network, information security, database, operating systems, or web technologies for highly complex business and technical needs across multiple groups Lead the strategy and resolution of highly complex and unique challenges requiring in-depth evaluation across multiple areas or the enterprise, delivering solutions that are long-term, large-scale and require vision, creativity, innovation, advanced analytical and inductive thinking Translate advanced technology experience, an in-depth knowledge of the organizations tactical and strategic business objectives, the enterprise technological environment, the organization structure, and strategic technological opportunities and requirements into technical engineering solutions Provide vision, direction and expertise to leadership on implementing innovative and significant business solutions Maintain knowledge of industry best practices and new technologies and recommends innovations that enhance operations or provide a competitive advantage to the organization Strategically engage with all levels of professionals and managers across the enterprise and serve as an expert advisor to leadership Required Qualifications: 7+ years of Engineering experience, or equivalent demonstrated through one or a combination of the following: work experience, training, military experience, education 5+ years of Agile methodology experience and working closely with product partners 1+ year of Payments Industry experience 1+ year of experience with workflow engines utilized for Payment Investigations (ex; Pega Smart Investigate, IBM Business Automation Workflow (BAW), Finastra, Temenos Payments, FIS Payment Hub / FIS Compliance Suite, Appian, etc.) Desired Qualifications: 3+ years' experience with Business Process Management / workflow technologies 5+ years of Java development 5+ years of RDBMS/NoSQL Development 1+ Years of Pega Smart Investigate experience Pega Certification - LSA - Lead System Architect, Part 2 7+ years' experience working with CI/CD (Continuous Integration, Continuous Delivery) / EPL (Enterprise Pipe Line) 5+ years of Wires / ACH or other payments specific experience. 5+ years experience with Test Automation and Performance Benchmarking tooling 3+ years experience with Springboot or equivalent framework Job Expectations: This position offers a hybrid work schedule. Relocation assistance is not available for this position Ability to travel up to 5% of the time Pay Range Reflected is the base pay range offered for this position. Pay may vary depending on factors including but not limited to demonstrated examples of prior performance, skills, experience, or work location. Employees may also be eligible for incentive opportunities. $159,000.00 - $305,000.00 Benefits Wells Fargo provides eligible employees with a comprehensive set of benefits, many of which are listed below. Visit Benefits - Wells Fargo Jobs for an overview of the following benefit plans and programs offered to employees. Health benefits 401(k) Plan Paid time off Disability benefits Life insurance, critical illness insurance, and accident insurance Parental leave Critical caregiving leave Discounts and savings Commuter benefits Tuition reimbursement Scholarships for dependent children Adoption reimbursement Posting End Date: 7 Jul 2026 *Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants. We Value Equal Opportunity Wells Fargo is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other legally protected characteristic. Employees support our focus on building strong customer relationships balanced with a strong risk mitigating and compliance-driven culture which firmly establishes those disciplines as critical to the success of our customers and company. They are accountable for execution of all applicable risk programs (Credit, Market, Financial Crimes, Operational, Regulatory Compliance), which includes effectively following and adhering to applicable Wells Fargo policies and procedures, appropriately fulfilling risk and compliance obligations, timely and effective escalation and remediation of issues, and making sound risk decisions. There is emphasis on proactive monitoring, governance, risk identification and escalation, as well as making sound risk decisions commensurate with the business unit’s risk appetite and all risk and compliance program requirements. Applicants with Disabilities To request a medical accommodation during the application or interview process, visit Disability Inclusion at Wells Fargo. Drug and Alcohol Policy Wells Fargo maintains a drug free workplace. Please see our Drug and Alcohol Policy to learn more. Wells Fargo Recruitment and Hiring Requirements: a. Third-Party recordings are prohibited unless authorized by Wells Fargo. b. Wells Fargo requires you to directly represent your own experiences during the recruiting and hiring process. Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a leading financial services company that has approximately $2.1 trillion in assets. We provide a diversified set of banking, investment and mortgage products and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through our four reportable operating segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth & Investment Management. Wells Fargo ranked No. 33 on Fortune’s 2025 rankings of America’s largest corporations. News, insights, and perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells Fargo Stories. Additional information may be found at: wellsfargo.com wellsfargojobs.com For questions on how to search and apply, visit frequently asked questions.