The Pepperstone story started in 2010. We know what it’s like to trade the world’s markets. Our team describes us as a place for the curious and the driven, and we like to do things a little differently; as a transformative global fintech we’re digital, nimble, connected, and united in our vision to create a better way to trade.
We thrive on progress – for our clients and for ourselves. Our organisational culture is ever-evolving, vibrant, diverse, global and results focused. You’ll find our 700+ team across 12 regions and 9 time zones.
The Role
The Principal Engineer is a senior individual contributor who provides technical leadership through influence, expertise, and collaboration. They operate beyond the scope of a single team, guiding multiple teams to make better technical decisions and shaping technical direction in partnership with Engineering Managers, Architects, and delivery teams.
This role focuses on raising engineering standards, improving developer experience, and supporting high-impact tactical and strategic initiatives across the organisation. The Principal Engineer is responsible for developing high-quality software designs and solutions while promoting engineering practices and culture aligned with organisational strategy.
Commercially aware and customer-focused, the Principal Engineer works to deeply understand business and technology needs, defaulting to action to deliver meaningful outcomes. They are an advocate for modern software engineering practices, including Continuous Delivery, and drive their adoption across teams.
This position reports to the Payments Engineering Manager, Budapest, Hungary. Our team is made up of individuals from all walks of life, each bringing unique experiences and perspectives that enrich our work and culture. We truly value this diversity and are excited to welcome someone who is open-minded, adaptable, and enthusiastic about collaborating in a globally connected and inclusive environment.
Key Position Responsibilities
- Partner with Engineering leadership to define and execute a roadmap that improves engineering quality, efficiency, and developer experience across the organisation.
- Lead and deliver high-impact technical initiatives that enhance delivery pace, predictability, and operational efficiency.
- Influence and guide teams to make better technical decisions, inspecting current practices and driving incremental improvements aligned with business objectives.
- Collaborate closely with Architecture, Portfolio, Engineering Managers, and delivery teams to align technical direction with delivery goals and target architecture states.
- Champion and implement modern engineering practices, with a strong focus on Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery, including automated testing, build and deployment pipelines, and observability.
- Contribute to high-quality software design and development, including participating in code reviews and pairing to uphold engineering standards.
- Mentor engineers and support capability uplift across teams, strengthening overall engineering culture and practices.
- Support hiring processes and contribute to performance development within the engineering organisation.
- Facilitate and, where needed, lead technical discussions, team ceremonies, and estimation activities to ensure effective delivery.
About You
- Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Software Engineering, other related certification, or equivalent on-the-job experience
- Proficiency in one or more modern programming languages (e.g., TypeScript/JavaScript, Go, Java) with the ability to work across multiple languages and ecosystems. Significant professional software engineering experience (typically 7+ years), including experience leading projects, technical initiatives, or engineering practices.
- Demonstrated ability to influence technical direction and drive outcomes without formal authority.
- Deep expertise in software engineering principles, including system design, design patterns, testing strategies (e.g., test pyramid), and modern development practices.
- Experience designing and evolving architectures across a range of systems, including distributed systems and cloud-native applications (AWS preferred).
- Strong understanding of API design and communication patterns, including REST, GraphQL, and gRPC, along with data formats such as JSON and protobuf.
- Extensive experience with Continuous Delivery, including automated testing, build and deployment pipelines, and monitoring and alerting.
- Effective and confident communicator with internal and external stakeholders at all levels.
- Experience working on platform-level projects servicing the needs of other engineers or teams.
- Experience designing, building, and enforcing team and service interfaces and boundaries.
- Demonstrated ability to work effectively with remote teams across various global locations and time zones.
- Strong organisational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritise and manage many competing tasks in a fast-paced environment.
- Self-motivated and proactive, with a passion for staying up to date with the latest technologies and best practices in Software Engineering.
Why you will enjoy working with us
- Competitive salary structure including company bonus scheme
- Genuinely collaborative and friendly culture
- Flexible and hybrid working
- Remote working option - work from anywhere for up to 4 weeks per year
- Ongoing personal development & learning opportunities
- 3 paid volunteering days per year & Workplace Giving Program
- Periodic recognition and reward programs for outstanding performance and achievements
- Frequent events and celebrations
- Employee Assistance Program & Wellbeing Initiatives
- Convenient and cozy office located near Astoria at KLUSTER Coworking
More about Pepperstone
We’re a regulated online Forex and CFD trading platform. With the scale of a global fintech and the agility of a start-up, we arm our clients with everything they need to take on the global markets with confidence. You will be part of a wider passionate and friendly team, and whilst things may not always go to plan, we learn quickly and move forward with impact. To learn even more visit and
We understand it’s important to do due diligence on a prospective employer and see what our team is saying on . We respect our team members’ experiences and will never pay to remove a negative review.
Pepperstone is an equal-opportunity employer. We are passionate about building a diverse workplace and strongly encourage applications from any background.
“We are a 2025 Circle Back Initiative Employer – we respond to every applicant”.
We will be reviewing applications as they come through, so if this is an opportunity that excites you, don't wait. Express your interest by clicking the apply button below as soon as possible.
Note to external agencies: While we appreciate the efforts of external recruitment agencies, we prefer to engage directly with applicants for this opportunity.