Commercial Legal Counsel

Commercial Legal Counsel Join to apply for the Commercial Legal Counsel role at Morpho. Job Description About Morpho Morpho is a leading Decentralized Finance (DeFi) lending protocol that recently secured $50 million from investors including Ribbit Capital, a16z crypto, Coinbase Ventures, Variant, Brevan Howard, Pantera, Blocktower, and 50 others to build an open lending network giving anyone, anywhere, access to the best possible terms. Morpho is experiencing explosive growth, with over $10 billion in deposits on the network, solidifying itself as the new standard for DeFi lending. Now, Morpho is scaling its team of contributors to establish itself as a cornerstone, not just of DeFi, but of a new internet‑native financial system. Our Mission Morpho’s mission is to power human ambition with open access to capital. Human ambition has no borders, but the capital to fuel it does. Today’s financial system is closed and fragmented. No one sees all opportunities, most overpay, and some are excluded entirely. We believe capital should flow efficiently to where it’s needed most — giving anyone, anywhere, access to the best possible terms. Location New York or remote (GMT‑5 up to GMT‑6 hours). How We Work We move fast on hard problems in a nascent market with no set playbook; navigating uncertainty is part of the job. You’ll be challenged: anyone can question work and decisions must be justified. We keep a high bar and match it with high support: we help each other unblock and share context openly, with low ego. More about our values: morpho.org/jobs. Role The mission of this role is to own the full lifecycle of commercial agreements at Morpho, from term sheet to signature, ensuring our partnerships with tier‑1 institutions are legally sound, protect our interests, and keep pace with the rapid growth of our GTM engine. Responsibilities Negotiate commercial agreements with partners including large tier 1 institutions to secure terms that align with Morpho's business goals and mitigate key risks; Draft, review, and finalize contracts from term sheet through signature to enable seamless deal closure and partnership execution; Coordinate across Growth, Integration, Marketing, and Finance teams to understand business priorities and ensure legal strategy supports go‑to‑market needs; Serve as legal point of contact during sales discussions with external parties to facilitate deal flow and answer partners' legal and compliance questions; Proactively brief internal teams on contractual obligations and risks to prevent downstream compliance issues and align execution; Build templates, tools, and standardized processes for legal operations to scale contract velocity without adding headcount linearly; Support partners' legal teams with protocol explainers and compliance materials to remove friction and accelerate deal timelines. What Success Looks Like In your first 30 days: You'll get up to speed on Morpho's product, corporate setup, external stakeholders, and prior deals. You'll shadow live negotiations to understand deal flow, internal handoffs, and the business context behind our agreements. By Month 4–6 (End of Probation): You'll autonomously support the Growth team on new deals, proactively introduce clauses that protect Morpho's interests, and earn trust from business partners by balancing speed with rigor. By Month 12: You'll have automated key parts of the contracting process using templates and tooling, reduced deal negotiation lead time, and scaled legal operations to keep pace with business growth, handling larger volumes and more complex deals without bottlenecks. Job requirements Competencies & Traits Adaptability – thrive in a fast‑moving, remote‑first environment where priorities shift, deal flow is unpredictable, and you need to adjust quickly without losing quality; First‑principles thinking & bias for action – challenge assumptions, propose creative legal solutions, and act with ownership instead of waiting for perfect information; Focus & simplicity – prioritize what matters, cut through complexity, and communicate decisions clearly and concisely in async channels; Low ego & collective success – credit the team, stay humble in negotiations, and put Morpho's mission above personal wins. Eager to win deals but remain a team player; Business orientation – understand what the business needs, defend those interests in negotiations, and think like a partner to Growth, not just a legal gatekeeper; Automation mindset – actively look for ways to scale, standardize, and remove yourself from repetitive work using templates, AI, or other tools. Must‑have Experience 5+ years of experience in contract negotiation or commercial law, either as external counsel or in‑house lawyer; 1+ year working in crypto with hands‑on experience in the space, not just buzzwords; Based in the US or significant experience working closely with US legal frameworks and counterparties; Experience negotiating with large, mature legal teams at tier‑1 institutions or enterprises; Native level English proficiency; Demonstrated experience automating or scaling legal operations using AI, templates, or other tools; Genuine enjoyment of the negotiation process, love the thrill of landing a deal and finding creative solutions under pressure. Perks & Benefits We design benefits around deep work and growth, so you can do the best work of your career. Expect fair, top‑tier compensation, real flexibility, time together in Paris, great health coverage, and support to keep learning. Equal opportunity We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and hire based on talent, potential, and values alignment. #J-18808-Ljbffr