Business Development, APAC

About the role

The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) is hiring an APAC-based business development professional to act as its visible and accountable presence in the region. The role defines how SDF shows up in APAC, shapes the business development and institutional strategy, and works remotely while coordinating closely with SDF's central teams.

Key responsibilities

• Own SDF's APAC business development effort, prioritizing opportunities within the agreed regional framework and adapting execution to local market needs and regulatory expectations.
• Lead in-market execution, including annual visits to hub markets covering conferences, ecosystem meetups, institutional meetings, roundtables, thought leadership and regulatory introductions.
• Work with the APAC Regional Director to align execution with the broader regional strategy and market development plan.
• Build and close partnerships with fintech, payment platforms, wallets, exchanges and developers, moving them to live Stellar integration.
• Manage institutional relationships with tier-1 banks, licensed digital asset platforms and payment majors.
• Translate regional intelligence into actionable insights and communicate them across BD and SDF.
• Maintain pipeline discipline in HubSpot and Airtable.
• Represent SDF at flagship regional events and own the design and execution of owned events such as roundtables and meetups.
• Partner with marketing on content and communications including press releases, videos, blogs and social content.

Required profile

• Bachelor's degree (required); Master's degree or MBA preferred.
• 7+ years of business development, partnerships or ecosystem experience, with substantial senior-level time in APAC markets.
• Deep senior-level relationships across APAC fintech, payments, blockchain and institutional stakeholders.
• Experience in blockchain, digital assets, stablecoins or tokenization.
• Experience leading complex, multi-stakeholder partnership negotiations and closing deals.
• Fluency in English; Mandarin or another Asian language is an advantage.
• Based in Singapore or Hong Kong, with the legal right to work there, able to travel extensively across the region and occasionally internationally.

Required skills

• Deep understanding of cross-border payments, Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and financial inclusion.
• Experience operating with integrity and compliance across the APAC regulatory environment.
• Exceptional communication skills across diverse audiences.