Technical Lead at Koalafi

At Koalafi, we believe in a world where no one has to put an important purchase on hold. That’s why we’re making it easier for more people to pay for big purchases over time. Retailers across the country rely on us to offer flexible lease-to-own financing to their non-prime consumers, while increasing sales and strengthening customer loyalty. Their 2M+ customers love us because we provide a flexible way for them to make payments and give them an opportunity to improve their credit. Our 200+ Koalafi teammates enjoy inspiring and challenging work that accelerates their careers. Interested in learning more about how we’re transforming the financing experience and joining our team? About the Role Koalafi is seeking a hands-on Tech Lead to lead the engineering efforts for our non-prime installment loan product. This is a greenfield initiative where you’ll drive the technical strategy and integration of Koalafi systems with a third-party loan servicing platform. You’ll guide a team of engineers responsible for: • Integrating with external servicing APIs • Identifying and driving changes to existing internal systems and APIs • Delivering a seamless, compliant, and scalable customer experience This is a unique opportunity to build a mission-critical capability from the ground up. You’ll partner cross-functionally across Product, Risk, Compliance, and Operations. You’ll also stay hands-on in design and delivery while mentoring engineers and shaping technical direction. What you’ll do Lead and Deliver • Define and own the technical roadmap for integrating Koalafi systems with a third-party loan servicing platform • Design and implement scalable, secure, and auditable services to support loan servicing, payments, and customer communications • Guide system design and maintain code quality across the integration stack • Build microservices and event-driven workflows to bridge internal systems with external platforms Collaborate and Coach • Partner with Product, Risk, and Compliance teams to translate requirements into technical implementations • Provide architecture guidance and technical mentorship to engineers • Foster a team culture grounded in ownership, collaboration, and engineering excellence Optimize and Evolve • Ensure observability and monitoring are built into all integration points • Implement strategies for audit logging, data reconciliation, and versioned integrations • Leverage AI development tools to enhance team velocity and consistency • Drive consistency with Koalafi’s architectural standards and modernization strategy Who you are • 5+ years of professional software engineering experience, with at least 1 year in a technical leadership role • Proven experience integrating with third-party platforms (bonus if financial/servicing-related) • Strong backend development skills, preferably in Golang • Experience with: • REST/GraphQL APIs • Asynchronous messaging/event-driven systems • AWS infrastructure • Knowledge of system reliability, observability, and integration test strategies • Communicates with precision across engineering, product, compliance, and executive audiences • Drives solutions forward using available context and judgment • Location Requirement: This position requires regular in-person attendance at one of our two office locations (Richmond, VA or Arlington, VA). Candidates must already be located within a commutable distance to either location, as relocation assistance is not available at this time. Preferred Qualifications • Experience in fintech, loan servicing, or payments • Familiarity with platforms like LoanPro, Amount, Peach, or other financial infrastructure providers Why choose Koalafi: A career at Koalafi means opportunities to tackle exciting challenges every single day. We take pride in a culture of innovation, trust, and ownership. You'll get outside your comfort zone, build meaningful relationships, and most of all, take charge of projects that ultimately help people get the things they need most. Benefits: At Koalafi, you will have a direct impact on our products and help shape the company’s success. We offer competitive compensation & benefits packages to keep you at your best: • Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage • 20 PTO days + 11 paid holidays • 401(k) retirement with company matching • Student Loan & Tuition Reimbursement • Commuter assistance • Parental leave (maternal + paternal) • Inclusion and Associate Engagement Programs Who we are & what we value: • We focus on what’s most important • We set clear expectations and deliver • We embrace challenges to reach our full potential • We ask, “How can this be better?” • We move fast together