Managing Director, Legal Digital Assets (Washington)

Your Opportunity

At Schwab, you’re empowered to make an impact on your career. Here, innovative thought meets creative problem solving, helping us “challenge the status quo” and transform the finance industry together.

In this newly created role, we are recruiting a senior legal leader to support the trading digital assets and blockchain technology. The Managing Director role will report to the Chief Counsel for Trading, Markets, and Operations and serve as an advisor to the Chief Counsel and business partners on the regulatory framework (e.g. rules of the SEC, FINRA, CFTC, NFA, and banking regulators) relating to trading digital assets and blockchain technology, including stablecoins and overall market structure.

The Managing Director will play a highly visible leadership role for the enterprise in this developing area of the law and important focus area for the firm. The leader will build the foundation and internal alignment for the future on key legal topics related to Digital Assets. As an advocate internally and externally, the MD will promote Schwab’s vision and values through a legal lens and share Schwab’s impact story as a corporate citizen.

Key Responsibilities and Outcomes:

• Provide specialized support to the Chief Counsel covering specific segments of trading, markets and operations for digital assets and blockchain technology.
• Regularly interact with the senior level business partners including the Heads of Trader and Retail Digital Assets and their direct management team.
• Develop and prepare guidance on complex legal issues arising from changes to federal law impacting trading of digital assets and blockchain technology.
• Advise the trading business on trading digital assets, including custody requirements, money services registration, and regulatory inquiries.
• Given the nature of trading, attorneys in this area are responsible for handling time-sensitive trading issues, including those related to execution and settlement of transactions.
• Maintain regular interaction and direct interface with senior policy makers at various regulatory agencies including the Fed, CFTC, NFA, FINRA and the SEC.
• Serve as an advisor to the Chief Counsel and business partners on the regulatory framework (e.g. rules of the SEC, FINRA, CFTC, NFA, and banking regulators) relating to trading digital assets and blockchain technology, including stablecoins and overall market structure.
• Review, analyze and interpret new legislative initiatives, including SEC, FINRA, CFTC, NFA rulemaking, court decisions, actions by trading platforms, that may impact market structure for digital assets.
• Consult and coordinate with other members of the legal services team to ensure efficient and consistent functioning.
• Manage outside counsel on significant matters.

What you have

Required Experience:

• Law degree (JD, LLB or equivalent) from an accredited US law school. Admission to and in good standing with the state bar of at least one U.S. state.
• 5+ years of legal experience with Digital Assets, including blockchain technology, stablecoins and overall market structure.
• 15+ years of legal experience in financial markets and trading, preferably for or within a bank holding company or large financial services firm.
• Thrives on initiating, building and cultivating strong authentic relationships inside and outside the group; highly collaborative; navigates and activates alignment across organizational silos.
• Extraordinary interpersonal and communication skills; phenomenal ability to communicate information effectively internally and externally, including to non-legal audiences, and to drive cross-functional alignment and action.
• Ability to handle multiple assignments simultaneously with effective resolution of conflicting priorities and experience advising business and technical teams on launching new products and features and in negotiating complex commercial deals.

Preferred Experience:

• Ability to use strategic and analytical capabilities to make sound, timely decisions based on client and field input supporting and maintaining a strong risk and control environment including evaluating risk versus expense versus the client experience.
• Strong client relationship management and negotiation skills required with the ability to assess and effectively communicate processing capabilities and identify alternative solutions for clients and business partners.
• Combination of strategic, practical and creative problem solving plus; “systemic” thinker who can connect all the dots, taking the initiative and resulting capabilities from concept to execution.
• Confidence and courage in business decisions, actions and communications with a demonstrated ability to take decisive action when needed, including championing ideas, position or dissent.
• Strong emotional intelligence/maturity and senior level executive presence.
• Creative problem-solver with the ability to stay calm under challenging circumstances.
• Execution oriented attitude with the humility, drive, and strong growth orientation.
• Facilitate a team-based approach to subject matter management and knowledge sharing, and comfort with a flexible, agile environment emphasizing collaboration and team performance over management hierarchy.