Director, Legal – Product & Regulatory

We are looking for a talented and capable lawyer to serve as a strategic legal partner to our product, engineering, and business teams. You will work across Kikoff’s growing product ecosystem—including credit-building products, earned wage access (EWA), a secured credit card, and new product lines in development—to help us move fast while staying on the right side of a complex and evolving regulatory landscape.

This role requires someone who is comfortable operating in areas of legal ambiguity, who can advise on both bank-partnered and direct-to-consumer product structures, and who thrives at the intersection of consumer financial services and technology.

• Serve as the primary legal advisor to product and engineering teams throughout the product development lifecycle, from concept through launch and iteration.
• Advise on the design, structuring, and regulatory implications of consumer financial products, including credit-building tradelines, earned wage access, secured credit cards, and new product concepts.
• Navigate federal and state consumer financial regulations, including TILA, ECOA, FCRA, ECOA, EFTA, UDAP/UDAAP, MLA & SCRA, ROSCA, state financial regulation, and the evolving EWA regulatory landscape.
• Provide guidance on marketing and communications under TCPA, CAN-SPAM, and other state and federal law. 
• Support both bank-partnered and non-bank product structures, including drafting and negotiating partner bank agreements, program agreements, and vendor contracts.
• Advise on data privacy and consumer data protection requirements, including CCPA/CPRA, GLBA, and state privacy laws.
• Monitor regulatory developments—particularly from the CFPB, state regulators, and the courts—and proactively translate them into actionable product guidance.
• Support state licensing applications, renewals, and compliance filings as needed.
• Draft, review, and negotiate consumer-facing terms and disclosures, marketing materials, and commercial agreements.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with compliance, risk, marketing, and operations to embed legal guardrails without slowing the pace of innovation.

• J.D. from an accredited law school and active membership in at least one U.S. state bar.
• 7+ years of experience in consumer financial services law, with meaningful exposure to fintech product counseling. A mix of law firm and in-house experience is strongly preferred.
• Deep familiarity with federal consumer finance statutes (TILA, ECOA, FCRA, EFTA) and state-level lending and money transmission frameworks.
• Experience advising on at least one of: credit-building or credit reporting products, earned wage access, or consumer lending through bank partnership models.
• Working knowledge of consumer data privacy laws (CCPA/CPRA, GLBA) and comfort advising product teams on data collection, use, and sharing practices.
• Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in fast-moving, ambiguous environments—translating legal risk into clear, decision-ready guidance for business stakeholders.
• Excellent judgment and a bias toward enabling the business, not just identifying risk.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to simplify complex legal concepts for non-legal audiences.
• Enthusiasm for Kikoff’s mission and the opportunity to expand access to financial services for underserved consumers.

• Experience advising on products involving AI or algorithmic decision-making in a consumer finance context, including fair lending and model governance considerations.
• Experience supporting SEC reporting, corporate governance, or capital markets work as a company scales.
• Prior work with multi-state licensing and regulatory examination processes.