Senior Data Architect

About the engagement Capital.com is building a greenfield UK banking platform on Thought Machine Vault, targeting Authorisation with Restrictions by end of 2026. The initial product scope covers Instalment Buy Loans (IBL), Savings and Deposits, with integrations across the customer mobile app, CRM, Integration layer, Core Banking (Thought Machine Vault), ClearBank (payments/settlement) and AWS infrastructure including Snowflake as the analytical data platform. The Data Architect role is part of an already-running delivery team. The successful candidate will replace the outgoing architect and must be comfortable joining mid-project, quickly understanding the existing data landscape and taking ownership of the data architecture across the programme. Role overview This is a hands-on architecture role combining business understanding with deep technical execution. The Data Architect will own the data architecture across the Capital.com UK programme — from source system analysis and data modelling through to detailed specifications that data engineers can implement directly. The role operates on an As Required basis embedded within the Vacuumlabs delivery team, reporting into the programme's governance structure alongside the Solution Architect, Smart Contract engineers and project management. Key responsibilities Take over and own the existing data architecture, performing reverse engineering where documentation is incomplete or outdated. Analyse the current data landscape across Thought Machine Vault (core banking), ClearBank (payments), CRM, customer app and supporting services — mapping data sources, integrations, transformations, dependencies and consumption points. Translate Capital.com 's business and regulatory requirements into clear data architecture, data models and technical solutions. Design scalable data architectures within the Snowflake + AWS environment, covering data warehousing, analytical reporting and regulatory data needs. Define logical and physical data models, data flows, integration patterns and transformation rules across the full stack. Produce detailed source-to-target mappings, data contracts, interface specifications and data quality requirements that the data engineering team can implement directly. Identify gaps, inconsistencies, technical debt and architectural risks in the current solution and propose remediation. Collaborate closely with the Capital.com CTO, Architect, product owners, Vacuumlabs Solution Architect, Smart Contract engineers and data engineers. Support UK banking regulatory and compliance data requirements (KYC, AML, transaction reporting). Contribute to data governance, security, lineage, ownership and data quality standards appropriate for a regulated banking environment. Review proposed implementations and ensure alignment with the agreed architecture and engineering standards. Clearly communicate technical decisions, dependencies and trade-offs to both technical and non-technical stakeholders. Required experience and skills Strong experience in a Data Architect, Solution Architect or Lead Data Engineer role, ideally in a banking or financial services context. Hands-on experience with Snowflake — architecture, data modelling, performance tuning and best practices. Strong knowledge of SQL, relational databases and modern cloud data platforms. Experience designing data warehouses, data lakes or enterprise analytical platforms. Strong understanding of ETL/ELT processes, data pipelines, integrations and transformation patterns. Ability to analyse and reverse-engineer existing systems with limited documentation — this is critical for the role. Strong data modelling skills — conceptual, logical and physical. Experience creating clear, detailed technical documentation and specifications that engineering teams can build from. Ability to understand business processes and translate them into technically sound data solutions. Strong communication skills and confidence working with both business stakeholders and engineering teams. Ability to work independently, take ownership and bring structure to an in-flight programme. Highly desirable Experience with Thought Machine Vault or other modern core banking platforms and their data models / event structures. Experience in UK banking, EMI or payments — particularly around regulatory data requirements (FCA, PRA). AWS experience (the programme runs on AWS infrastructure). Knowledge of dbt or similar transformation frameworks. Experience with data orchestration tools (e.g. Airflow). Familiarity with ClearBank or similar BaaS / payments infrastructure and their data feeds. Experience with data cataloguing, lineage and governance tooling. Knowledge of CI/CD and software engineering practices applied to data solutions. Experience with event-driven architectures, APIs and streaming platforms. Expected profile The ideal candidate is not someone who only draws high-level diagrams. They are technically credible, comfortable diving into existing databases and code, able to understand how the current solution actually works and capable of producing specifications detailed enough for the engineering team to implement without ambiguity. They can discuss business objectives and regulatory requirements with the Capital.com leadership, challenge unclear requirements, and then independently translate the agreed direction into a robust, practical technical design — all within a fast-moving greenfield banking programme. Engagement details Client: Capital.com UK (CCUK) Location: Remote, with occasional travel for workshops (UK/Warsaw) Engagement type: T&M, As Required Start: Immediate (replacement of outgoing Data Architect)