Corporate Counsel

About us:

Kiva is a global nonprofit, founded in 2005, with a mission to expand financial access and help underserved communities thrive. Kiva unlocks capital for borrowers through crowdfunded loans supported by individuals around the world. Lenders on Kiva can start with as little as $25 to support causes that matter most to them, whether that’s gender equity and support for women, refugees, climate change, small businesses, agriculture, and more. Since our founding, over two million people have invested $1.9 billion in real dreams and real opportunity, spanning more than 90 countries and 4.7 million borrowers.

As we work toward our mission, Kiva invests in building and retaining a global team of talent to add to our values-driven and digital-first culture. Our organization is supported by over 700 volunteers and 130+ full time employees dispersed around the world, as well as within team hubs located in San Francisco, Nairobi, Bogota, and Bangkok. Kiva’s team is growing as we pursue exciting new opportunities to scale our impact and create a financially inclusive world.

Kiva's values:

Impact first - This is why we exist. This is the drumbeat we march to. Every day.

Extreme ownership - Own it; you, your relationships, your impact. Insist that others support you and hold you accountable.

Be curious and bold - Never stop learning. Question assumptions. Take Risks and dream big.

Inclusion. Equity. Diversity. - Without reservation and without caveat. In our hiring, in our workplace and in our impact in the world.

Honor and integrity - Do the most right thing in the most right way. Cherish diversity and respect each other.

Love and kindness always - Say what you mean. Mean what you say. And don't say it mean. Clarity. Courage. Kindness.

Role overview:

We are seeking a talented transactional lawyer to join Kiva’s legal team as Corporate Counsel, reporting to Kiva’s Director of Legal Affairs. Kiva’s small legal team works closely with our business teams across the organization in support of our mission. The Corporate Counsel will be responsible for preparing, reviewing, and negotiating various types of contracts, overseeing Kiva’s regulatory filings, performing legal research to help inform Kiva’s business and compliance strategies, maintaining and updating certain company policies, and helping to improve legal team processes and systems. A successful candidate will be able to confidently and independently manage a wide range of projects at any given time, and act as a trusted partner to our business teams to provide practical advice and support in a global, remote-first workplace.

At this time, we can only consider applicants with authorization to work in the United States on a permanent, full-time basis; unfortunately we cannot provide visa sponsorship.

Key responsibilities include:

• Support Kiva’s marketplace investment committee by reviewing and providing legal input on due diligence reports on prospective new lending partners.
• Prepare/review, and negotiate contracts with Kiva’s lending partners, service providers, and other counterparties.
• Maintain and update Kiva’s standard contract templates and certain internal policies on an ongoing basis.
• Research new and existing laws in various jurisdictions and assist the legal team in developing and executing compliance strategies.
• Ensure that Kiva’s regulatory filings are kept up to date in all jurisdictions.
• Manage legal operations to improve the team’s organizational processes and systems.
• Manage, oversee, and communicate with auditors for the completion of the annual audit
• Act as a flexible, creative, and supportive member of Kiva’s organization as a whole

Qualifications:

• JD from an accredited US law school and license to practice law in at least one US state
• Minimum 3 years of relevant transactional legal practice in a law firm or in-house environment
• Demonstrated ability to prepare and negotiate contracts with high degree of independence, detail-orientation and prioritization
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
• Outstanding self-directed organizational skills
• Ability to quickly learn and internalize Kiva-specific context, goals, processes, and resource limitations
• Good judgment and creative thinking to help business teams find practical solutions instead of legal roadblocks
• Optimistic outlook and the desire and patience necessary to work in a transformative, dynamic, remote-first environment
• Passionate about our mission and willing to embody our values of impact first, extreme ownership, be curious and bold, inclusion equity and diversity, honor and integrity, and love and kindness always

Preferred qualifications:

• Subject-matter experience with financial/lending transactions, contracts, fintech, e-commerce, and/or securities law
• Experience working with nonprofits and/or familiarity with nonprofit law
• Experience with state regulatory filings

What we offer:

• An opportunity to improve real lives, solve hard problems, and change the world
• Friendly, supportive, and adventurous environment with a team of engaged colleagues
• A comprehensive, industry-leading benefits package including health, dental and vision insurance, parental leave, professional development, 401k matching, generous PTO, and more.
• Opportunities to connect with and learn from colleagues and partners around the world
• Salary range: $100K - $125K; a final offer will be dependent upon a candidate’s location, skills and experience.

A diverse and inclusive workplace where we learn from each other is an integral part of Kiva's culture. We actively welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities and perspectives. We are an equal opportunity employer and a great place to work. Join us and help us achieve our mission!

We will only accept applications directly from candidates. Kiva will not be responsible for any recruiting agency fees, absent a formal agreement.