Location: London (or remote)
3-6 month freelance contract
Our client is a technology company that builds decentralized digital identity solutions. They believe that everyone has the right to own and control their data, and they are committed to creating a trusted digital credentials ecosystem that empowers businesses and individuals to securely exchange data and services across borders and industries.
They are in search of a solution-oriented Rust Software Engineer (Backend) with deep, demonstrable expertise and experience in Rust, to work on secure, scalable, and high-performance backend systems. You will be responsible for the continued enhancement and development of a multi-component platform, where your expert skills in designing, architecting, and building quality systems will intersect with your hands-on coding, performance testing, and integration experience.
Responsibilities:
* Build and deliver secure, high-quality features and improvements using Rust. Experience in TypeScript and Dart will set you above other applicants for this role
* Create standards-compliant world-class software systems and components, most of which will be open-sourced.
* Influence architectural direction while staying hands-on with development
* Design and implement solutions to complex, large-scale technical challenges
* Identify and drive the most critical improvements in product quality, security, and performance
* Guide the team to build well-tested, secure, and performant services
* Establish and refine best practices for high-scale distributed systems
* Collaborate closely with product, security, and engineering peers in a fast-paced, iterative environment
Requirements:
* Proven experience with performance optimization and a track record of diagnosing and preventing system bottlenecks
* Strong backend development skills with Rust as a core expertise
* Deep knowledge of TypeScript/Node.js; Dart experience strongly preferred. Familiarity with C# or Go is a plus
* Expertise in cloud computing (AWS) and cloud-native environments
* Proven track record in designing and deploying distributed systems using modern design patterns
* Skilled in technical documentation (C4 Model, ADRs) and clear communication of architectural decisions
* Strong advocate for privacy by design, security-first principles, and high-performance systems
* Expertise in applying asymmetric cryptography in production-grade products
* Experience with authorization/authentication domains; knowledge of identity, verifiable credentials, or secure data exchange is a strong plus
* Comfortable thriving in autonomous, fast-moving startup environments and collaborating across global teams