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Head of Corporate Development

Plaid· Finance
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Hybrid (San Francisco)$199.2k - $355.2kFull-timePosted 2w ago

About the role

Plaid’s Corporate Development function drives inorganic growth by evaluating and executing M&A and investment opportunities to extend product, technology, and market position. The Head of Corporate Development leads build-vs-buy decisions, shapes strategic direction, and partners across functions to source, evaluate, and close deals that accelerate Plaid's strategy.

Responsibilities

  • M&A & Investment Strategy. Build and own a proactive pipeline of acquisition and investment opportunities aligned to Plaid's strategic priorities. Maintain an up-to-date view of the competitive and startup landscape to identify targets before they're formally for sale.
  • Outbound Relationship Building. Build and nurture a network of founders, executives, and investors across fintech and adjacent markets to source proprietary deal flow.
  • Market & Competitive Intelligence. Develop well-researched and insightful points of view on adjacent categories and key competitors, and use that intelligence to help inform Plaid's strategic direction and investment priorities.
  • Deal Execution & Diligence. Lead end-to-end deal execution: valuation, financial modeling, diligence coordination, negotiation, and structuring, partnering with key cross-functional throughout.
  • Post-Deal Integration & Accountability. Partner with Finance, Legal, People and business leaders to successfully integrate closed acquisitions. Set a clear integration plan with milestones and performance metrics, track integration milestones and backtest outcomes against the original investment thesis.
  • Cross-Functional Orchestration. Engage Product, Engineering, and GTM to qualify opportunities and sharpen Plaid's areas of strategic interest.
  • Executive & Board Communication. Prepare board- and executive-ready materials on market landscape, deal pipeline, deal evaluation and due diligence findings, integration plan and post-close performance.

Qualifications

  • 12+ years of experience across Investment Banking, Private Equity, Corporate Development or Management Consulting (with a focus on PE due diligence work).
  • Deep, hands-on experience evaluating and executing deals end-to-end, including sourcing, valuation, financial modeling, diligence, negotiation, and closing.
  • A track record of managing multiple complex deals simultaneously, from inception through post-close integration.
  • Strong analytical rigor paired with sound business judgment, knowing when to dig deeper and when to move forward with a decision.
  • Comfort building frameworks and processes, turning ambiguity into repeatable motions.
  • Executive presence and excellent written, verbal, and visual communication skills, with the ability to engage senior stakeholders and Board-level audiences.
  • Prior experience in Technology is a must-have. Experience partnering with Product and Engineering leaders is a plus; fintech or financial services experience is a plus.

Benefits

  • Plaid provides a comprehensive benefit plan, including medical, dental, vision, and 401(k).
  • Additional compensation in the form(s) of equity and/or commission are dependent on the position offered.
Last updated Oct 21, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.

About Plaid

Enabling all companies to build fintech solutions

Plaid helps all companies build fintech solutions by making it easy, safe and reliable for people to connect their financial data to apps and services.

fintechbankingpaymentsfraudcreditopen financefinancial data
Company profileWebsite

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