Founding Smart Contract Engineer

As Lead Protocol Engineer you are the sole technical owner of the smart contract layer — from architecture through mainnet launch and beyond. You will work closely with a quant team that publishes the index daily on-chain, and with a DeFi PM driving ecosystem integrations. This is a founding hire with high autonomy and a direct line to the founding team.

Key Responsibilities

Design, implement, test, and deploy the core protocol contracts: USHP token (ERC-20), sUSHP staking vault (ERC-4626), yield distributor with Props tier-weighting, and oracle consumer with staleness checks and circuit breakers for the proprietary daily index feed

Write and deploy DeFi protocol adapters: Pendle SY interface for yield tokenization, oracle adapters for Aave/Morpho collateral onboarding, and Uniswap v3/Curve liquidity pool configuration

Own the full audit process: scope, auditor selection, remediation, and deployment playbooks

Define the threat model and security controls — including oracle manipulation resistance for a custom non-standard feed, access control, and economic attack vectors specific to an index-pegged yield-bearing token

Set up post-launch monitoring and incident response for all on-chain components

Serve as the technical interface between smart contracts and the backend, frontend, and quant teams

Drive DeFi protocol governance submissions (Aave, Morpho) including risk parameter documentation and oracle methodology explanations to protocol risk teams

Required Qualifications

Shipped at least one token or DeFi protocol to mainnet and operated it post-launch through the full lifecycle: design, audit, mainnet and  incident response

Strong Solidity with a portfolio of production contracts; deep familiarity with common failure modes and attack vectors

Experience with yield-bearing vault patterns (ERC-4626 or equivalent), staking mechanics, and on-chain yield distribution

Hands-on experience writing oracle consumer contracts including staleness checks, circuit breakers, and fallback logic — particularly with custom or non-standard feeds

Demonstrated ability to work through DeFi protocol integrations: Pendle adapter contracts, lending protocol governance submissions, or DEX pool deployment

Comfortable as the sole protocol engineer initially; knows when to bring in additional help and how to onboard them

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with tokenized real-world asset protocols: NAV-pegged tokens, collateral management, redemption queue mechanics, or KYC-gated transfer restrictions

Prior work alongside a quantitative or data science team translating model outputs into precise on-chain specifications

Familiarity with RWA compliance constraints and regulated token architectures

Experience navigating lending protocol risk team reviews for non-standard collateral or oracle types