We are looking for a Senior Java Microservices Engineer to design and build high-throughput, low-latency payment systems using modern microservices architecture on IKP (Kubernetes-based platform). You will play a key role in developing scalable, secure, and resilient payment services, leveraging Service Mesh capabilities for enhanced communication, observability, and security across distributed systems.
Job Title: Senior Java Microservices Engineer – Payments (IKP | Service Mesh)
Location: Sheffield, UK
Duration 6-12 Months
Exp: 5-10
Key Responsibilities
* Design, develop, and maintain Java-based microservices for end-to-end payment processing.
* Build REST/gRPC APIs and event-driven services supporting critical payment flows such as:
* Payment initiation
* Validation
* Routing
* Clearing & settlement
* Exception handling
* Implement resilience patterns including timeouts, retries, circuit breakers, and bulkheads.
* Leverage Service Mesh capabilities (traffic routing, mTLS, observability, policy enforcement) to improve service reliability and security.
* Optimize systems for high performance and scalability (low latency, high throughput, concurrency handling).
* Ensure idempotency, fault tolerance, and safe retries in distributed systems.
* Implement payments-grade controls such as auditability, traceability, and non-repudiation.
* Collaborate with product, architecture, and SRE teams to deliver secure-by-design systems.
* Drive engineering best practices:
* Code reviews
* Automated testing
* CI/CD pipelines
* Continuous improvement
Required Technical Skills
* Strong hands-on experience in Java (preferably Java 11+) and microservices architecture.
* Experience working on IKP or Kubernetes-based platforms.
* Solid understanding of Service Mesh concepts:
* Traffic management
* mTLS
* Sidecars
* Service discovery
* Strong knowledge of microservices design patterns:
* Domain-Driven Design (DDD)
* API versioning
* Contract-first development
* Backward compatibility
* Experience with event-driven architecture and messaging systems (e.g., Kafka).
* Understanding of message delivery guarantees (at-least-once vs exactly-once).
* Experience implementing observability solutions:
* Distributed tracing
* Metrics
* Structured logging (e.g., OpenTelemetry)
Preferred / Nice-to-Have Skills
* Frameworks: Spring Boot / Quarkus
* Build tools: Maven / Gradle
* Containers & orchestration: Docker, Kubernetes
* API tools: OpenAPI / Swagger, API Gateways
* Security: OAuth2, OIDC, JWT, mTLS, secrets management
* CI/CD: Pipeline automation, SAST/DAST tools
* Testing: Unit, integration, contract testing (e.g., Pact), performance testing
Payments Domain Experience (Highly Preferred)
* Strong understanding of payment processing lifecycle:
* STP (Straight Through Processing)
* Validation & enrichment
* Routing
* Reconciliation
* Exception handling
* Familiarity with payment standards/rails:
* ISO 20022
* SEPA
* Faster Payments
* ACH
* Knowledge of risk & compliance controls:
* Transaction limits
* Sanctions screening
* Audit trails
* Regulatory requirements