The Solana Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to the adoption, decentralization, and security of the Solana network, is hiring a DeFi Growth Lead to own protocol growth partnerships, drive institutional DeFi adoption, and design liquidity and incentive programs that move TVL and volume across the Solana DeFi ecosystem.
 About the Opportunity — Solana DeFi Growth
Role Focus: Deciding which venues get backed, which counterparties come onchain, and what moves TVL
Core Partners: Phoenix/Ellipsis, Kamino, Jupiter, Jupiter Lend, and Drift
Institutional Scope: Asset issuers, market makers, and allocators across perps, lending, spot, and tokenized equities
Organizational Mission: A world where individuals own their data and use permissionless networks
Base: Solana Foundation, a non-profit based in Zug, Switzerland
Career Impact & DeFi Growth Opportunity
Global Coordination: A seat carrying the heaviest protocol-partnership and institutional load, US-centered with global reach
Direct Ownership: Own program growth from thesis through post-mortem
High-Impact Metrics: Directly move TVL, volume, active institutional counterparties, and desks onboarded
Career Growth: Build deep credibility across protocol founders, quants, and institutional allocators
Position Overview
Solana Foundation is seeking a DeFi Growth Lead to take the DeFi growth thesis and ship it — deciding which venues get backed, which counterparties come onchain, which programs run, and what actually moves TVL and volume. This role is primarily partnerships and growth-execution focused, spending the majority of time on protocol relationships, institutional deal-making, and liquidity programs, with ownership from thesis through to post-mortem.
 Why This Role Matters: As DeFi Growth Lead, you own protocol growth partnerships with the core teams building Solana’s leading DeFi venues, drive institutional adoption by bringing asset issuers, market makers, and allocators onchain, design and run liquidity and incentive programs modeled on payout-to-outcome relationships, carry named trader relations with the largest regional desks across prop shops and market makers, grow the retail base through funnel, campaigns, and creator partnerships, and directly own the numbers that matter most in DeFi: TVL, volume, and institutional adoption.
Key Responsibilities
Protocol Growth Partnerships
- Own protocol growth partnerships with core venue teams building Phoenix/Ellipsis, Kamino, Jupiter, Jupiter Lend, and Drift
- Work on growth mechanics, integrations, and joint go-to-market strategies
Institutional DeFi Adoption
- Bring asset issuers, market makers, and allocators onto Solana DeFi across perps, lending, spot, and tokenized equities
- Reach past the Americas since most of the global institutional book routes through the US
Liquidity & Incentive Programs
- Design and run liquidity and incentive programs with app teams
- Model the payout-to-outcome relationship before committing, killing programs that only rent flow
Trader Relations & Retail Growth
- Carry named relationships with the largest regional desks, including prop shops, market makers, HFT, and OTC firms
- Run outbound to bring flow onchain, handle onboarding and VIP placement, and feed product requirements back to the team
- Grow the Americas retail base through funnel, campaigns, and creator partnerships
Cross-Functional Coordination
- Align legal, finance, product, and marketing to get programs live
- Own the numbers: TVL, volume, active institutional counterparties, desks onboarded, retail growth, and program ROI
Qualifications & Requirements
Essential Expertise
- Deep DeFi fluency, including perps microstructure, lending risk parameters, and CLMM and vault mechanics
- A track record of moving numbers — TVL, volume, or adoption you were directly responsible for at a protocol, exchange, market maker, or fund
- Institutional credibility, having sat across from allocators, market makers, or issuers and closed deals
- Comfort owning protocol relationships as your primary surface
- An operator mindset, able to run the Americas and coordinate across EU and APAC hours
About Solana Foundation
The Solana Foundation is a non-profit based in Zug, Switzerland, dedicated to the adoption, decentralization, and security of the Solana network. Solana is a high-performance blockchain that delivers a fast and friendly user experience without sacrificing security. The Solana Foundation is working to realize a world where individuals own their data, use permissionless networks, and transfer information and value freely around the world, seeking talented people willing to jump in and use their expertise to help the ecosystem build.
Career Excellence: Own a high-impact, global DeFi growth mandate at one of the leading blockchain ecosystems, directly shaping institutional adoption and liquidity across Solana.
Who Should Apply?
- DeFi Growth & BD Leaders:Â With a proven track record moving TVL and volume at a protocol or exchange
- Institutional Crypto Dealmakers:Â Experienced closing deals with allocators, market makers, and issuers
- Trader Relations Specialists:Â Comfortable managing named relationships with prop shops and HFT desks
- Protocol Partnership Managers:Â Deeply fluent in perps, lending, and liquidity mechanics
- Global Operators:Â Able to coordinate across US, EU, and APAC time zones
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