About Pontera:  Pontera is a FinTech SaaS company on a mission to help millions of Americans retire better by enabling financial advisors to manage, rebalance, and report on 401(k) and other retirement plan accounts. Pontera customers range from Fortune 100 financial services firms and large independent broker dealers to small independent RIA’s and advisory firms. At Pontera, we are proud of our people-first mentality and culture. You will have the unique and exciting opportunity to be part of a team whose mission is to scale Pontera into one of the largest FinTech companies in the world. We have significant funding from some of the most notable venture capital investors, led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, and are in a period of hyper-growth. The next critical step in our trajectory is adding to our world-class team, and that’s where you come in.

The Role: Pontera is seeking a General Counsel to be our first in-house legal expert, partnering with senior leadership to guide corporate governance, strategic agreements and transactions, and regulatory compliance. The General Counsel will also have the opportunity to lead our advocacy work with regulatory organizations and establish a legal department to support Pontera’s growth. The ideal candidate is a hands-on legal professional with extensive experience in the financial services and technology industry.

Responsibilities:

• Oversee day-to-day legal matters of the company, including contract terms negotiation, corporate governance, compliance, risk mitigation, and intellectual property.
• Manage, build, and motivate the legal team.
• Draft, review, negotiate, and maintain record of a variety of contracts, including vendor and partnership agreements, terms of service, engagement letters, confidentiality agreements, and investment advisory agreements.
• Support the company’s strategic transactions, driving timely legal review and document version control across all parties.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to identify and mitigate legal risks, proposing new solutions and processes that align with the company's overall mission and growth trajectory.
• Support corporate governance, preparing board materials, maintaining corporate records, and advising on best practices.
• Assist in employee matters, such as structuring equity compensation agreements and employment contracts.
• Represent Pontera in engagements with state and federal regulatory bodies and related organizations; this includes advocacy initiatives, responses to inquiries, and comment letter submissions.
• Provide review of significant external announcements and marketing materials to mitigate legal risk.
• Conduct legal research and stay apprised of changes to laws and regulations that may impact the company.
• Manage outside counsel in specialized areas as needed, ensuring the company seeks necessary and prudent advice while well-managing its legal expenses.
• Handle any legal disputes or litigation that may arise.

Requirements:

• 10+ years of experience as corporate counsel, either in-house or at a top-tier law firm.
• Extensive experience in financial services, with a strong understanding of wealth management, retirement services, and the regulatory landscape.
• Experience guiding complex deals and partnerships, including management of contracts & agreements.
• Broad legal knowledge and experience developing legal strategies in the tech and/or financial services space.
• Highly analytical, with sharp attention to detail.
• Extremely high level of integrity & professionalism, and excellent communication skills.
• J.D. from an accredited law school and licensed to practice in the state of New York.

Compensation: The estimated annual base salary for this position is $300,000 - $350,000.

Pontera has exclusively engaged Kerwin Associates to conduct this search.  Any resumes sent directly to Pontera will be forwarded to Kerwin Associates.  If you are interested in speaking about or applying for this role, please contact Maddie Murray (maddie@kerwin.com) at Kerwin Associates.