Product Owner, valr
Crypto Wallets & Blockchain
Crypto trading platform
Job no longer available
Crypto trading platform
21-100 employees
Job no longer available
21-100 employees
Company mission
To usher in a new financial paradigm that makes financial services available to the public with pricing that is fair and transparent, and with an experience that is intuitive and seamless.
Role
Who you are
- Experience working with Layer 1 & Layer 2 blockchain protocols
- Ability to understand & articulate and document complex nuances of various crypto protocol
- Fully up-to-date on the current trends & developments in blockchain & crypto wallets space
- Proven experience as a Product Owner in the cryptocurrency industry
- Strong ability to articulate a clear vision and strategy for product development
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to engage with stakeholders at all levels
- Expertise in managing product backlogs, writing specifications, and prioritizing features
- Exceptional research skills and the ability to gather insights quickly
- Cross-functional collaboration skills with engineering, design, and business teams
- Problem-solving mindset and the ability to make informed trade-off decisions
- A proactive approach to identifying and resolving inefficiencies in processes
What the job involves
- As Product Owner at VALR, your primary responsibility is to create and drive the vision for new products and features
- You will take ownership of the entire product development lifecycle, from conception to launch, ensuring alignment with business goals and customer needs in the fast-paced and dynamic world of cryptocurrency trading
- Create and articulate a compelling vision for new products and features
- Own the product development process from conception to launch, working iteratively with the engineering team
- Effectively communicate with all levels of staff, including executive-level stakeholders
- Collaborate cross-functionally with engineering, design, and business to develop and steer product roadmaps
- Conduct in-depth research on markets, customers, competition, business, and products to guide decision-making
- Write detailed product specifications, manage backlogs, and prioritise new features effectively
- Identify and resolve inefficiencies in product management tools, processes, and workflows
- Collaborate with the engineering team to understand technical limitations and make informed trade-off decisions
- Conduct demos of new and upcoming product capabilities
- Run user acceptance testing and sign-off on behalf of the business
Our take
With over half of the population unserved by banks, Africa has been particularly enthusiastic about cryptocurrency, with 1200% growth in the market size in 2021. However crypto infrastructure has lagged behind, with low security and high fees for market participants as a result. Enter VALR, a modern, low-fee crypto exchange aiming to revolutionise trading in Africa and beyond by providing a reliable and profitable alternative to traditional banking.
The African crypto space is competitive, with exchanges such as Yellow Card ChainEx and Ovex also operating in the market, but VALR stands out with its low transaction costs, support of over 60 crytpo assets and transparent pricing structure. It also operates a popular referral program which has paid out 70 million Rand (over £3 million) to its users.
Although the fallout from the FTX scandal has hit the African crypto sector hard, VALR is continuing in its mission to spread crypto trading across the continent. Having recently closed a Series B funding round, it is continuing its expansion, going live in Zambia. It is also hiring engineering talent extensively to develop its product and strengthen the African crypto trading infrastructure. If it is able to weather the crisis it has eventual goals to grow into the Indian market, and beyond.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Company
Funding (last 2 of 3 rounds)
Mar 2022
$50m
SERIES B
Jul 2020
$3.4m
SERIES A
Total funding: $54.9m
Company benefits
- Remote work: Work from wherever you like - Employees to ensure that there is secure, stable internet connectivity in order to effectively work remotely
- Home office setup: Mac laptop and a discretionary allowance to buy all the extras needed to work happily from home - all of it yours to keep after 3 years. Terms and Conditions will apply
- Learning fund: R16,000 per employee per year for anything that helps you upskill for work, in addition to scheduled VALR training
- Performance bonus: When you contribute to VALR’s success, you’ll be rewarded with discretionary bonuses
- 3 months maternity and 1-month paternity paid leave
- Regular get-togethers outside of work
- Annual company retreats
- Leave: Flexible leave policy with 3 weeks minimum
Company HQ
Edenburg, Sandton, GP
Leadership
Farzam Ehsani
(CEO)Was previously Blockchain Lead at Rand Merchant Bank. Before that was Engagement Manager for McKinsey & Co and a Business Analyst at Deloitte Counsulting.
Theo Bohnen
(CTO)Also Co-founder of The Coding Ground. Was a Blockchain Engineer with RMB Foundery and a Software Developer at Driven Alliance.
Badi Shdhakaran
(CPO)Was a Senior Blockchain Developer at Rand Merchant Bank and Competence Leader - Software Development for IQ Business South Africa. Before that was a Senior Software Engineer at Yahoo!.
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