Head of Data

About Bullish

Bullish is an institutionally focused global digital asset platform that provides market infrastructure and information services. These include:
Bullish
Exchange
– a regulated and institutionally focused digital assets spot and derivatives exchange, integrating a high-performance central limit order book matching engine with automated market making to provide deep and predictable liquidity. Bullish Exchange is regulated in Germany, Hong Kong, and Gibraltar.
CoinDesk
Indices
– a collection of tradable proprietary and single-asset benchmarks and indices that track the performance of digital assets for global institutions in the digital assets and traditional finance industries.
CoinDesk
Data
- a broad suite of digital assets market data and analytics, providing real-time insights into prices, trends, and market dynamics.
CoinDesk
Insights
– a digital asset media and events provider and operator of , a digital media platform that covers news and insights about digital assets, the underlying markets, policy, and blockchain technology.

Reports To

Vice President, Engineering

We're looking for a strategic, results-oriented Head of Data to lead our data-driven initiatives. You'll be responsible for defining our company's data vision, strategy, and governance. The ideal candidate is a senior business leader with a strong technical background who can effectively leverage data to drive business value and partner with the data engineering leads.

Role & Responsibilities

• Define and execute a comprehensive data and analytics strategy that aligns with and drives key business outcomes, such as revenue growth, operational efficiency, and customer experience.
• Establish, implement, and enforce robust data governance policies and standards to ensure data quality, integrity, and security. Ensure full legal adherence to data privacy laws like GDPR and CCPA by working closely with the Data Protection Office.
• Lead, mentor, and grow a multi-disciplinary team of data scientists and data analysts. Foster a culture of high performance, innovation, and continuous learning.
• Act as a primary liaison with C-level executives and department heads to identify and prioritize data needs. Translate complex data insights into clear, actionable business recommendations for non-technical stakeholders.
• Use data analytics to evaluate potential merger and acquisition targets, assessing the value of their data assets, technical integration challenges, and potential synergies.
• Champion a data-driven culture across the company by promoting data literacy and encouraging data-informed decision-making.
• Partner closely with the data engineering leads to ensure the data strategy is supported by the underlying technical infrastructure. Provide clear requirements and collaborate on the roadmap for the data/AI/ML platform.
• Drive the adoption of cutting-edge methodologies, such as AI and ML, to unlock new business value from our data assets.

Experience / Qualifications

• 12 + years of experience in data-related roles, with at least 2 years in a senior leadership position (e.g., Head of Data, Director of Data Science).
• Proven experience developing and executing a data strategy that directly impacted business growth and operational efficiency.
• Demonstrated ability to build, lead, and mentor high-performing teams of data scientists and data analysts.
• Demonstrated experience and interest in the crypto and/or finance domains.
• Demonstrated experience in guiding businesses through M&A transactions, with a focus on developing and implementing a strategy for the consolidation of data functions and assets across business units.
• Deep understanding of modern data technologies, including cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP), databases, and data warehousing concepts.
• Well-versed in industry practices for effective data engineering.
• Proven experience in transitioning from centralized data teams to enabling data platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to apply AI/ML techniques to data, generating insights that directly influence business strategy and outcomes.
• Familiarity with a range of data lake ecosystems (Databricks, Snowflake) and big data technologies (Kafka, Flink, Spark, Presto, Druid).
• Familiarity with various types of databases (Redis, Postgres, MongoDB, BigQuery).
• Exceptional communication and presentation skills, with the ability to translate complex data findings into clear business insights for C-level executives and other non-technical stakeholders.
• Proven ability to collaborate with engineering, product, and other business units to achieve shared goals.
• A strong sense of ownership and dedication to the team's mission, with a product-focused and user-centric mindset.
• Ability to operate and thrive in a dynamic startup environment.

Bullish is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are fast evolving and striving towards being a globally-diverse community. With integrity at our core, our success is driven by a talented team of individuals and the different perspectives they are encouraged to bring to work every day.