TRM is on a mission to build a safer financial system for billions of people. We deliver a blockchain intelligence data platform to financial institutions, crypto companies, and governments to fight cryptocurrency fraud and financial crime. We consider our business — and our profit — as a way to move towards our mission sustainably and at scale.
As a Senior Research Data Scientist, you will have end-to-end ownership of custom models, heuristics, algorithms, and other data products that feed directly into TRM’s UX. In collaboration with a highly skilled team of engineers, data scientists, and research scientists, your goal will be to uncover valuable and defensible information that can be used to detect, prevent, and mitigate cryptocurrency fraud and financial crime.
The models and algorithms you create will be specifically designed to identify new threat vectors that are unique to cryptocurrencies and blockchains. These tools will be consumed by prestigious entities such as former FBI, Secret Service, and other law enforcement agencies, enabling them to stay ahead of evolving criminal activities in the cryptocurrency space.
In particular, the Traceability Team is responsible for investigating and tracing illicit actors that utilize technologies intentionally designed to obscure their blockchain transactions. The problems we face are exciting, challenging, and open-ended, requiring strong research-minded focus and curiosity. If you like solving hard problems with smart people, this is the place for you!
The impact you will have here:
- As leader of the Traceability team, you will drive technical data science investigations & research, resulting in statistical models tailored to identify patterns and anomalies associated with cryptocurrency fraud and financial crime. These models will help detect potential threats and provide valuable insights for law enforcement agencies.
- Research novel methods to parse blockchain data & “crack” obfuscating technologies, to consistently derive insights & learnings from huge amounts of data.
- Develop custom models, algorithms, and interactive visualizations that will be consumed by former FBI, Secret Service, and Europol agents and analysts to detect new threat vectors unique to cryptocurrencies and blockchains
- Collaborate with engineers and research scientists to design algorithms to analyze complex data structures inherent to cryptocurrencies and blockchains.
- You will stay up to date with the latest developments in the field of blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies, and financial crime. This will involve continuous learning, attending conferences, and exploring research papers to incorporate cutting-edge techniques into your work.
What we’re looking for:
- Your academic background is in a quantitative field such as Computer Science, Statistics, Engineering, Economics . Advanced degree preferred.
- You have 4+ years of experience working in a data science role, and leading research projects E2E
- You have strong proven experience with data science programming languages in production environments (Python & SQL heavily preferred)
- You have a high tolerance for ambiguity. You find a way through. You anticipate. You connect and synthesize.
- Experience with investigating financial data is preferred. Experience with and/or interest in blockchain technologies, cryptocurrencies is preferred.
About the Team:
- TRM operates with a high level of collaboration and interdependence, fostering an inclusive culture where connections extend beyond work. We value diverse personalities and seek someone who is both results-driven and sociable, with strong communication, leadership, and teamwork skills, along with a positive, solutions-oriented mindset.
- As a globally distributed team, members may observe different timezones. However, most of the team will overlap between the hours of 7am-12pm PST for meetings and collaboration.
- All team members, regardless of location must have at least 4 hour overlap with PST business hours.
- The team is involved in 2 different on-calls
- Analytics on-call: only requires focus on working time (average of < 1 hour a day every month)
- Data Science on-call: full week on-call to ensure Data Science pipelines are running smoothly (average of 1-2 hours a day every 3 months)
Learn about TRM Speed in this position:
- Deliver a last minute impactful project for a key customer
- Build complex products effectively with tight timeframes (1-2 sprints for MVP)
- Work on several projects in parallel with different priorities and stakeholders
The following represents the expected range of compensation for this role:
- The estimated base salary range for this role is $170,000 - $190,000. Please note that the base range is applicable to the US and will be different depending on the country.
- Additionally, this role may be eligible to participate in TRM’s equity plan.
Leadership Principles
Our Leadership Principles are foundational element of our strategy, guiding how we make decisions, how we treat each other, and how we behave day-to-day.
- Impact-Oriented Trailblazer: We put customers first, driving for speed, focus, and adaptability.
- Master Craftsperson: We prioritize speed, high standards, and distributed ownership.
- Inspiring Colleague: We value humility, candor, and a one-team mindset.
Build a Career
Joining TRM means being part of a mission-driven team comprised of industry leaders. At TRM, you'll experience:
- Purpose and Mission: Have a real-world impact, from disrupting terrorist networks to returning stolen funds.
- Inspiring Colleagues: Collaborate with industry leaders and learn something new daily.
- Personal Growth: We're not just using technology; we're inventing it and taking category-defining products to market.
Work Environment
- Remote First: Our HQ is online. Tools like Zoom and Slack ensure seamless collaboration, but we also value in-person interactions, organizing regular meetups and offsites for team bonding. Clear communication is key in our decentralized setup. With tools like Slack, Loom, and voice notes, we document meetings and decisions, promoting transparency and efficiency.
- Ownership & TRM Speed: Small teams drive big goals at TRM. Every team member has significant ownership and responsibility, fostering an environment of initiative and direct impact. While there's no strict clocking in or out, we expect team members to balance personal schedules and team needs. We move “surprisingly fast” while maintaining a high bar in service of our customers and mission. This can feel both intense and rewarding. Our unique approach to projects emphasizes quick wins, rapid iterations, and constant feedback.
- Diversity and Inclusion: Diversity at TRM encompasses backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. Every day is an opportunity to learn from a colleague, whether they're a law enforcement expert or a tech pioneer.
- Annual Company Offsite: Once a year, TRMers come together from around the world to attend a 1-week mandatory company offsite. This is designed to foster in-person relationships, creativity, and strategic alignment. Employee attendance is required of all TRMers.
Join Us
We're looking for team members who love building from the ground up and want to work hard in a fast-paced and ambitious environment. We are remote-first, with exceptionally talented team members located around the world. If you like solving tough problems quickly and seeing your work improve the lives of billions of people, we want you at TRM.
We encourage you to reach out even if your experience doesn't precisely match the job description. Don't worry about picking exactly the right job; we can always explore other options after starting the conversation. Your passion and interests will set you apart, especially if your background or career is unconventional.
To all recruitment agencies: TRM Labs does not accept unsolicited agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to TRM Labs employees. TRM Labs is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes and will not pay fees to any third-party agency or company that does not have a signed agreement with the Company.
Top Skills
What We Do
TRM Labs is a blockchain intelligence company that helps financial institutions, crypto businesses and government agencies detect and investigate crypto-related financial crime and fraud. Every day, we tackle challenges in data engineering, data science, and threat intelligence to advance our mission to build a safer financial system for billions of people.
We have raised over $79M from JPMorgan Chase, Visa, Citi, PayPal, Block, Initialized Capital, Tiger Global, Bessemer, and Y Combinator.
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