Business Development Lead - Institutional

About the role Interop Labs is seeking a Business Development Lead – Institutional to expand its footprint with financial institutions, asset managers, and other enterprise partners. This role will be responsible for driving adoption of Axelar's secure cross-chain infrastructure by institutions exploring tokenization, decentralized custody, RWA platforms, and interoperable DeFi applications. The ideal candidate brings strong existing relationships across institutional finance and fintech, and is deeply familiar with trends in digital asset infrastructure, blockchain custody, and institutional crypto adoption. You will act as a trusted advisor to partners, owning the full BD lifecycle from outreach to integration and post-deployment growth. Your responsibilities Identify, engage, and close institutional partners — including banks, custodians, asset managers, financial infrastructure platforms, and RWA/tokenization providers Own the end-to-end partnership development process: prospecting, pitching, technical coordination, negotiation, and onboarding Collaborate with product, legal, and solutions teams to craft compelling value propositions and compliant solutions Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders and ensure partner needs are clearly communicated across Interop Labs Track and report on key metrics related to pipeline health, deal progress, and revenue opportunities Represent Interop Labs and Axelar at industry events, conferences, and working groups (e.g., tokenization, cross-border payments, DeFi institutionalization) Your profile Based in New York, US. 5+ years in business development, sales, partnerships, or strategy roles in institutional financial services, fintech, or enterprise blockchain Strong understanding of the institutional digital asset landscape, including custody, fund infrastructure, stablecoins, and tokenized assets Demonstrated success in sourcing and closing high-value partnerships, preferably involving technical integrations or multi-stakeholder alignment Ability to translate complex technology into business value for financial decision-makers Familiarity with market infrastructure and regulatory considerations related to tokenization and DeFi Self-starter mindset with excellent organizational and interpersonal communication skills Passion for the future of open, interoperable financial systems Bonus Prior experience with L1/L2 blockchain ecosystems, custody platforms, or tokenized fund infrastructure Knowledge of smart contract platforms and cross-chain architecture Why us? Autonomous, distributed environment with the opportunity to work collaboratively in a diverse team worldwide. The scope to contribute to high impact work and make a difference in a decentralized protocol. The chance to challenge yourself whilst learning heaps of stuff in the process. Unlimited time off throughout the year to rest and recharge. Competitive compensation with stock options, experiencing growth from the initial phase. About us Interop Labs builds interoperability technology. Interoperability between blockchains is crucial technology infrastructure for the growth of Web3 and the advancement of internet technology as a whole. Interop Labs is the initial developer of Axelar Network - the programmable Web3 interoperability platform, scaling the next generation of internet applications to billions of users. Axelar network's key attributes are programmability, security and scalability. Axelar ( ) has raised over $100 million from leading VCs including DCVC, Galaxy, Polychain, Dragonfly, Coinbase, and more. Its diverse partner ecosystem spans industry heavyweights such as Ripple, Circle, dYdX, Uniswap, JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, Microsoft, and others—underscoring Axelar’s unique market position and opportunity in unifying stacks between traditional finance and decentralized ecosystems. Axelar protocol was founded by Sergey Gorbunov (MIT PhD, UWaterloo Professor) and Georgios Vlachos (MIT MSc, Math Gold Medalist), who previously helped to build and launch Algorand. Interop Labs is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, or any legally protected status.