Business Development, Cardless
Digital Verticals
$150-185k
+ Equity
Offers relocation assistance
Office located in Mission District, SF
Co-branded credit card creation platform
Be an early applicant
Co-branded credit card creation platform
21-100 employees
Be an early applicant
$150-185k
+ Equity
Offers relocation assistance
Office located in Mission District, SF
21-100 employees
Company mission
To make credit more engaging, rewarding, and accessible.
Role
Who you are
- 7+ years of progressive experience in business development, strategic partnerships, or related roles within the payments industry, financial technology, e-commerce platforms or closely related sectors
- Proven track record of sourcing, negotiating, and successfully signing significant strategic partnerships that have driven substantial business growth
- Demonstrated expertise in developing and executing software, AI/data and platform focused partnerships within the payments and loyalty vertical
- Strong understanding of the payments ecosystem gained from experience working with Issuers, PSPs, Fin-techs, and other related sectors
- Deep knowledge of partnership models, contract negotiation, and financial implications
- Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence and build consensus at all levels
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to develop data-driven strategies and track performance
- Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Finance, or a related field; MBA or equivalent advanced degree preferred
- Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment and manage multiple priorities effectively
- Willingness to travel as needed
What the job involves
- We are looking for a highly accomplished and results-oriented Senior Manager, Business Development, to spearhead new partnership development within key digital-first and tech-forward sectors
- In this hands-on role, you will collaborate closely with the Cardless business development, product, and engineering teams, as well as other cross-functional partners, to identify and secure new partnership opportunities. You will be responsible for building a pipeline of digital and AI-driven opportunities and managing the entire sales process, from lead sourcing to contract negotiations
- Additionally, you will work closely with product and design to shape the future product and feature roadmap for Cardless, playing a critical role in driving significant growth for the business
- Strategic Partnership Development: Define and execute a comprehensive strategy to identify, prioritize, and secure strategic partnerships within target verticals, including Digital Marketplaces, E-commerce Platforms, AI, and Digital Currencies
- End-to-End Partnership Lifecycle Management: Lead the complete partnership lifecycle, from initial opportunity identification and qualification through negotiation, contract execution, and successful activation and implementation
- Tech-Forward Go-To-Market: Leverage your experience and comfort with technology and AI/data-driven sales to effectively position the Cardless product and solution set to prospects, engaging key decision-makers and influencers from engineering, data and analytics, and other technical roles
- Sales Tools and Enablement: Partner with design and product teams to develop product demos, sales aids, and working prototypes to support the business development process
- Market Expertise and Insights: Maintain a deep understanding of the payments, data, and fintech landscape, including industry trends, competitive dynamics, and emerging opportunities within target verticals. Utilize this knowledge to inform partnership strategy and identify innovative collaboration models
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with Product, Engineering, Marketing, Legal, and Finance teams to ensure seamless partnership integration, activation, and ongoing success
- Executive Communication: Effectively communicate partnership strategy, progress, and key performance indicators to senior leadership
- Performance Management: Establish and track key performance metrics for partnership success, ensuring the team meets and exceeds targets for signed partnerships and activation goals
- Relationship Management: Cultivate and maintain strong, executive-level relationships with key partners
Our take
Cardless is a financial technology company attempting to modernize co-branded credit card programs. There are around 200 brands in the U.S. with traditional cards that haven't been modernized in over 20 years. These traditional cards, from the likes of Costco and Sam's, enable shoppers to collect reward points that they can use for things like travel.
Cardless is helping popular consumer brands (for example, NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers) launch credit cards so they can engage with their fans and reward them with bespoke benefits. For example, a virtual conversation with a player.
Cardless’ co-founders are no strangers to the financial industry. Michael Spelfogel spent time at Visa and Scott Kazmierowicz worked in banking for Goldman Sachs. Through their experiences they spotted a gap in the market for simple, credit card loyalty programs that focus on customer experiences.
The global credit card market is valued at over $100 billion. It's certainly big enough for consumer brands to enter, however, with Cardless acting as a middle-man, there's always a risk that it could get frozen out by the big banks.
Freddie
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
-30% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 6 rounds)
Sep 2025
$60m
SERIES C
Nov 2024
$30m
GROWTH EQUITY VC
Total funding: $140m
Company benefits
- 💸 Competitive salaries, equity, and a 401(k) plan
- 🏥 Top-of-the-line healthcare (medical, vision, and dental), with 100% primary coverage and 75% dependent coverage for medical
- 🌴 Unlimited paid time off, with a minimum of 15 days off per year
- 👶 Parental leave for birthing and non-birthing parents
- ✈️ Team trips & offsites
- For in-office employees:
- 🍱 Catered lunch at the office every day, plus plenty of snacks & drinks
- 🚎 $250/month commuter assistance for public transit or our parking garage
- For remote employees:
- 🖥️ $500 remote setup stipend to help you do your best work
Company HQ
SoMa, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Scott Kazmierowicz
(CEO)Former Investment Banker at Allen & Company and Bank of America. Former Software Engineer at Goldman Sachs. BS in Computer Science at Stanford University.
Michael Spelfogel
(President)Former Data Scientist at Lyft and Rent the Runaway. Formerly in Commercial Card Management at Visa. BASc in Management Science and Engineering at Berkley.
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