Senior Legal Counsel (Investment Products)

Join Upvest, a leading investment API provider, as a Senior Legal Counsel specializing in investment products. In this role, you will be responsible for building a scalable, cross-border legal framework that supports Upvest's international expansion. You will work closely with product and engineering teams to ensure compliance is integrated into the product design from the start. Additionally, you will serve as the internal expert on EU and German financial regulation, lead the negotiation of complex B2B agreements, and drive the modernization of Upvest's legal function. This position offers flexibility, development opportunities, and a focus on wellbeing.

• As a Senior Legal Counsel for Investment Products, your main missions will include:
• 1. Building a scalable, cross-border legal framework that keeps pace with fast-moving product designs, ensuring compliance with financial regulations.

1. Leading the legal adaptation of Upvest's core German investment offering as the company expands into the UK, Switzerland, and the wider EEA.
2. Serving as the internal expert on EU and German financial regulation, monitoring and interpreting regulatory developments, and translating their implications into actionable guidance.

• Regulatory Expertise: Strong command of EU and German financial law (MiFID, WpIG, WpHG). Exposure to UK (FCA) regulation or other European NCAs is a strong plus
• Industry Background: Experience in a regulated investment firm, fintech, infrastructure provider, or bank with a brokerage and custody product offering
• Qualification: at least 3–5 years post-qualification experience (PQE) in the financial services industry. At least one German legal qualification (Erste Juristische Prüfung)
• Capital Markets Depth: Hands-on understanding of lifecycles across a variety of investment products (stocks, investment funds, bonds, derivatives) at the level of a seasoned practitioner
• Automation Advocate: Enthusiasm for streamlining the legal function through technology whether tooling, AI-assisted review, or smarter process workflows
• Pragmatic and Direct: You focus on enabling growth through clear-eyed risk judgement. You cut through complexity and give the business answers it can act on
• Languages: Professional fluency in English and German — essential for regulatory filings and high-stakes stakeholder management
• International Mindset: Familiarity with adapting core legal frameworks to new European markets and regulatory regimes