Principal Network Engineer II (Fintech)

Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

Company

A global fintech business whose Platform Engineering function builds internal platforms for developing and running services, similar to a private cloud provider.

What you will do

• Set technical direction for network engineering, define reference architectures and standards, lead major designs, mentor senior engineers, and guide build-versus-buy decisions.
• Manage on-premises and public cloud networking through infrastructure as code, configuration management, vendor APIs, source control, and automated validation.
• Build self-service connectivity tools with policy checks for network segments, cloud networks, firewall rules, and private connectivity.
• Design routing, switching, firewall policy, segmentation, load balancing, DNS, edge, certificate, service discovery, and hybrid connectivity capabilities as reusable, code-defined services.
• Implement monitoring, telemetry, alerting, secure least-privilege API access, automated backups, drift detection, and audit evidence for resilient and compliant networks.
• Own production operations and on-call, test failover across sites, providers, and clouds, handle complex incidents, and reduce recurring manual network requests through automation.

Requirements

• Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Extensive experience as a principal or lead network engineer in large production environments, setting technical direction across multiple teams.
• Demonstrated success turning architectural gaps into automated, self-service, or platform solutions with measurable results.
• Expert routing and switching across data centres and cloud environments, including BGP, OSPF, VLANs, overlay networking, QoS, and L2–L7 protocols.
• Experience running networks in at least one major public cloud, including hybrid connectivity.
• Deep experience with firewall policy and segmentation in regulated environments, including audit support.
• Strong network automation skills using infrastructure as code, configuration management, APIs, and a network source of truth.
• Production-quality coding in one or more of Go, Python, Rust, PowerShell, or Bash, with Git, code review, and CI.
• Strong knowledge of load balancing, DNS, DHCP, VPNs, certificate management, and service discovery.
• Solid Linux, virtualisation networking, and network observability experience.
• Hands-on use of AI coding assistants and agentic tools, with safe-use practices covering verification, least-privilege access, and sensitive-data protection.
• Clear written communication for architecture documents and incident reviews aimed at technical and non-technical audiences.

Nice to have

• Experience with enterprise routing, switching, and next-generation firewall vendors.
• Experience with enterprise load balancers, service discovery tools, and network source-of-truth platforms.
• Experience with edge security services such as WAF, DDoS protection, and Zero Trust access.
• Experience with log analytics or SIEM platforms for network observability.

Culture & Benefits

• Permanent position within a global fintech business.
• Close collaboration with software, systems, DevOps, reliability, and security engineers.
• AI-assisted engineering is part of day-to-day work.
• Accessibility needs are supported, and underrepresented talent is encouraged to apply.