Backend Engineer

About us: 

Luno is the crypto investment app you can rely on, enabling you to buy, store and explore crypto securely. We’re committed to putting the power of cryptocurrency in everyone's hands sensibly and responsibly.

Since 2013, we’ve helped millions of people around the world invest safely in crypto. We do this by cutting through the hype and supporting customers at every step of the way. All products and cryptocurrencies on our platform must first meet stringent legal, risk and technical security standards.

Transparency is key for us. Luno stores all crypto on a 1:1 basis and we have rigorous processes in place so you can be confident your investment is secure. We’re available in more than 40 countries around the world and we work closely with respective regulators in all of these markets to be fully compliant, as we believe this is the best way to help everyone, everywhere, invest safely.

The role in a nutshell:

We're building teams to help us succeed in our mission to upgrade the world to a better financial system. As an intermediate engineer, you’ll be joining a group of highly motivated software engineers who you’ll work collaboratively with across our pods.

As a fast-growing company with offices around the world, you’ll immediately see how your contributions directly impact both our internal users and client experience. Many of the problems we are solving result in trail blazing solutions which can’t be found on Stack Overflow; so we’re looking for engineers who flourish working in a complex domain.

Your mission will be:

• Build distributed microservices that are accessed by 10m customers from across the globe.
• Design, build and maintain advanced applications services.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define, design, and ship new features.
• Write testable, maintainable code for robustness and reliability.
• Work on bug fixing and improving application performance.
• Write code that directly affects users, the company and the Bitcoin ecosystem.

A little about you:

• Background in computer science in areas such as algorithms, data structures, and software design.
• Proven experience leading development efforts and guiding engineering teams through end-to-end project delivery.
• Extensive programming experience in Backend based technologies. Go(lang) is preferable.  
• A continuous improvement mindset.
• BSc/MSc/PhD in computer science or other technical discipline, or equivalent working experience.
• To be friendly, transparent, articulate and driven to succeed.

Don’t be put off if you don’t tick all of the boxes – they’re a guide based on what we’d love to see 

What stack we work on:

• Kotlin, Swift & Angular
• Go(lang), gRPC
• Kubernetes (EKS), Docker
• CloudFlare, CloudFront, nginx
• MySQL (RDS), Redis (ElastiCache), etc
• Prometheus, Grafana, CloudWatch, Jenkins

Life at Luno:

• Remote but reachable work policy gives you the freedom to choose between working from home or the office.
• Plus the option to buy and sell up to 5 days leave
• Improve body and mind, with excellent private medical insurance
• Access to Learnably and our additional learning platforms for your personal and professional development
• 6 months primary care-giver leave
• Paw-ternity leave for your furry friend
• Annual Inspiration Day in addition to your annual leave which increases based on your length of service! 
• A collaborative, friendly work community, with regular social events and virtual cooking, dancing, drawing and house planting classes hosted by our Lunauts
• 0 fees up to a certain amount with Luno from the day you start.*

*Offer only available on Luno Instant Buy, not Luno Exchange

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

View all current vacancies at Luno →

1. Read the full job description and requirements on this page carefully before applying — tailor your application to what the employer actually asks for.
2. Update your CV and save it as a PDF. Make sure your contact details, most recent experience and qualifications are easy to find.
3. Click the apply button on this page to complete your application on Luno's own careers site. The employer manages the shortlisting process directly.
4. Have certified copies of your ID and qualifications ready. Many South African employers request them once you are shortlisted.
5. Applications close on 29 August 2026. Submit well before the deadline — late applications are normally not considered.
6. Keep a record of what you submitted and when. If you have not heard back within a few weeks of the closing date, it is acceptable to follow up politely.

If Luno shortlists you for the Backend Engineer position, preparation makes the difference. Work through these steps:

• Research Luno before the interview — look for their official website, social profiles and any recent news. Interviewers expect you to know why you want to work there specifically.
• Go through the job description above and prepare a specific example from your own experience for each of the main duties. Most interview questions will be drawn from what the advert emphasises.
• Structure your answers with the STAR method — Situation, Task, Action, Result. Concrete stories with measurable outcomes are far stronger than general claims about your abilities.
• Prepare two or three thoughtful questions to ask the panel — about the team, how success is measured in the role, or growth opportunities. It signals genuine interest.
• Plan your logistics early. Confirm whether the interview is in person in South Africa or online, and arrive or log in at least ten minutes early.

Read our full interview guide for Engineering jobs →