Impress employers and recruiters.
Choose from hundreds of resume examples.

Target Resume Now

Tailor your resume to this Software Engineer - Backend role.

Rezi rewrites your resume against Cardless's job description. Free.

Resume score gauge reading 58 out of 100

Don't guess if your resume is good enough.

See how it scores against the Software Engineer - Backend posting at Cardless — free, in seconds.

About the Role

As a Backend Engineer at Cardless, you'll work across the systems that run our partners' card programs, including applications, underwriting, accounts, ledgers, transactions, payments, rewards, risk, and partner-facing APIs. This role is deliberately general, allowing engineers to move to wherever the problem is. The work involves building new features, scaling and hardening existing systems, and laying groundwork for future products. The company values strong systems thinking and problem-solving skills over specific prior experience in payments or lending, though such experience is advantageous. This role is open at multiple levels, from mid-level through staff.

Responsibilities

Design and build backend systems that move real money, make credit decisions, and serve hundreds of thousands of cardholders
Take projects from ambiguity to production: scoping, design, implementation, testing, rollout, and operational life
Work across domains rather than inside a single service, going where the highest-value problem is
Partner with product, risk, compliance, operations, and external counterparts to ship within a regulated environment
Improve reliability, observability, and developer experience, and enhance existing systems

Requirements

Strong systems thinking and problem-solving abilities
Ability to reason about unfamiliar systems, identify issues, and make sound decisions with incomplete information
Experience building and operating production backend services with a track record of end-to-end project delivery
Solid fundamentals in distributed systems, APIs, databases, and infrastructure
Proficiency in a modern backend language and ecosystem (Java primarily, Python for data work)
Clear communication skills and a focus on correctness
Ability to work in-office 5 days a week

Skills

Backend systems design and development
Distributed systems
APIs
Databases
Infrastructure
Java
Python
Systems thinking
Problem-solving
Communication
Fintech
Payments
Lending
Card issuing
Authorization
Ledgers
Settlement
Reconciliation
Disputes
Regulatory work
Workflow orchestration (Temporal, Step Functions)
Event streaming
Partner-facing APIs

Location

San Francisco, CA

Work Type

In-office

Experience Level

Mid-level
Staff

Salary/Compensations

$160,000 - $295,000

Benefits

Meaningful Start-up equity
100% health, vision & dental primary coverage
75% health, vision & dental dependent coverage
Catered lunches
$250/month Commuter benefit
Parental leave
Team building events & happy hours
Flexible PTO with a minimum of 15 days off per year
Apple equipment
401k plan

About the Company

Cardless is building the infrastructure for companies to design, build, and launch their own financial products, enabling brands to create credit cards that feel entirely their own.
The company's APIs and components manage the entire customer journey from application to support, while handling lending, compliance, and operations.
Cardless raised a $60 million Series C in September 2025, led by Spark Capital, with a total funding of $170 million.
The team consists of over 70 people and is scaling toward profitability by year-end 2026.
The company culture seeks kind, humble individuals with high standards and low egos, who are passionate about improving products, systems, and teams.