Job Description for Head of Security at Ethena Labs - Globally Remote
Who We Are and What We are Doing:
Ethena Labs is actively building and deploying a suite of groundbreaking digital dollar products aiming to upgrade money into the internet era.
Our flagship product, USDe, is a synthetic dollar backed by digital assets, and takes the novel approach of using a delta-neutral hedged basis strategy to maintain its peg. This product scaled from zero to $15b in 18 months.
Expanding on this, iUSDe is designed specifically for traditional financial institutions, incorporating necessary compliance features to enable them to access the crypto-native rewards our protocol generates, in an institutional-friendly manner.
Ethena has also developed USDtb: a fiat backed GENIUS compliant stablecoin in partnership with BlackRock which has scaled to ~$2b.
These products are also offered in a whitelabel stablecoin offering where any application, chain, wallet or exchange can launch their own stablecoin on Ethena's back-end infrastructure.
Through these offerings, Ethena Labs is not just creating new financial products; we are building the foundational infrastructure for a more open, efficient, and interconnected global financial system.
Open job offerings will be focused on two new major product lines coming to market in the next few months.
Join us!!
The Role
As the Head of Security, you will lead and own the comprehensive security strategy for our Ethena. You will be functionally accountable for all aspects of security, ensuring the protection of our assets, infrastructure, data, personnel, and facilities. This includes cybersecurity, blockchain security, physical security, and operational security.
This is a pivotal opportunity to build a security-first culture in a fast-paced, high-stakes environment where DeFi innovations meet real-world risks. You will collaborate closely with Product Engineering, DeFi Engineering, Security Engineering, DevOps and non-engineering teams to embed security into every facet of our operations, from smart contract development to physical site protections. By driving compliance, incident response, and proactive threat mitigation, you'll safeguard our users' funds, maintain regulatory alignment, and position the company for scalable growth in the evolving crypto landscape.
What You'll Do
- Develop and execute a holistic security strategy encompassing cybersecurity, blockchain security, physical security, and operational security, aligning with industry standards (e.g., NIST, ISO 27001) and DeFi-specific risks.
- Oversee blockchain and smart contract security, including audits, formal verification, secure key management, and protections against exploits like reentrancy or flash loan attacks.
- Build and enforce a robust cybersecurity framework, including threat detection systems (e.g., SIEM, IDS/IPS), secure DevOps practices, penetration testing, and vulnerability assessments.
- Manage physical security operations, including access controls, surveillance, executive protection programs, travel risk assessments, and site audits for offices, data centers, events, and key personnel residences.
- Drive compliance and regulatory alignment, achieving milestones such as SOC 2 and ISO 270001; prepare for audits and liaise with regulators.
- Establish incident response and crisis management plans, conducting simulations, drills, and rapid recovery for cyber, physical, or hybrid threats to minimize downtime and losses.
- Foster a security-first culture through training, workshops, and integration of security-by-design principles across all teams.
- Lead and scale the security team, hiring and mentoring Senior/Staff Security Engineers (and potentially physical security specialists), while overseeing the Security Engineering team.
- Implement real-time monitoring, threat intelligence, and performance metrics for digital and physical assets.
- Manage security budgets, vendor relationships, and resources to optimize effectiveness.
- Future-proof security for growth, anticipating emerging threats in DeFi and adapting systems for new products, integrations, and expanded operations.
What We’re Looking For
- 10+ years of progressive experience in security leadership roles, with demonstrated expertise in cybersecurity, physical security, and risk management, preferably in fintech, crypto, or high-tech environments.
- Proven track record in developing and implementing comprehensive security strategies, including blockchain/DeFi security (e.g., smart contract auditing, cryptographic protocols) and physical protections (e.g., executive security, facility assessments).
- Strong leadership skills with experience building and mentoring high-performing teams, including oversight of engineers and coordination with cross-functional stakeholders.
- Expertise in incident response, crisis management, threat intelligence, and compliance frameworks (e.g., SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR, AML/KYC); experience achieving certifications is highly desirable.
- Proficiency in secure software development, infrastructure security (e.g., cloud, Kubernetes, AWS), and tools for monitoring, automation, and vulnerability mitigation.
- Excellent communication and collaboration abilities to convey complex security concepts to technical teams, executives, regulators, and non-technical stakeholders.
- Strategic thinker with adaptability in dynamic environments, strong problem-solving, and a proactive approach to risk management.
- Experience in budget and vendor management for security operations.
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Information Security, or a related field; advanced certifications such as CISSP, CISM, CRISC, or similar are a plus.
- Familiarity with DeFi-specific risks and technologies is highly desirable.
Why Ethena Labs?
You'd be joining a group that has well established itself as one of the most successful crypto-native company's of all time, a group with a mission to revolutionise decentralised finance and it's position in global finance.
Work alongside a passionate and innovative team that values collaboration and creativity.
Enjoy a flexible, remote-friendly work environment with established opportunities for personal growth and learning.
If you subscribe to the mission of separating the dollar from the state, then we want to hear from you!
We look forward to receiving your application and will be in touch after having a chance to review.
In the meantime, here are some links to more information about Ethena Labs to help you check us out:
We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.
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