Benefits and compensation
Paid well. Covered comprehensively. Transparent about it.
We are building infrastructure — not a founder-romance startup. Compensation, benefits, and equity are set at senior-staff financial infrastructure levels. We publish the philosophy here and the specific bands in the interview process.
- Medical premium
- 100% employee
- 401(k) match
- 4% · estimate
- PTO
- Unlimited · 28-day expected
- Sabbatical
- 6 weeks at 5 years
Six pillars
What you get, in one page
We do not publish everything in marketing detail, but we do publish enough that you can evaluate the offer before you apply.
- 01
Healthcare with no tiering
Full medical, dental, and vision for employees and dependents. Premiums covered at 100% for employees and 80% for dependents. Blue Cross PPO in the US; local-equivalent coverage in the UK and Singapore. - 02
Retirement with a real match
401(k) in the US with a 4% company match (estimate, pending formal plan adoption). Matching SIPP or equivalent in the UK and regional schemes elsewhere. Enrollment automatic at 90 days. - 03
Equity everyone participates in
Every full-time employee receives an equity grant. Four-year vesting, one-year cliff. Strike prices published internally every quarter. We refresh grants for top performers, not as ritual but as compensation. - 04
Time off you will actually take
Unlimited PTO with a 28-day expectation. Two weeks fully off at year-end — the company closes. Floating holidays for regional observances. Parental leave covered in full for 16 weeks for all parents. - 05
Sabbatical at five years
Six paid weeks at year five. Eight paid weeks at year ten. Meant to be taken, not accumulated. Handoff plan required; absence covered as a company cost, not on your team's budget. - 06
Remote-work support
$2,500 home-office stipend annually. Co-working membership in your city if you want one. One fully-paid in-person week per quarter at a Wavestar hub. Travel booked by the company; no reimbursement paperwork.
Specifics
Benefits at a glance · US baseline
- Medical · employee
- 100% premium covered
- Medical · dependents
- 80% premium covered
- Dental
- 100% employee, 80% dependents
- Vision
- 100% employee, 80% dependents
- 401(k)
- 4% match (est) · immediate vest
Estimate pending formal plan adoption in Q3 2026.
- Equity
- All FT employees · 4-year vest, 1-year cliff
- PTO
- Unlimited · 28-day expected minimum
- Year-end close
- Two weeks fully off · paid
- Sick leave
- Separate from PTO · unlimited
- Parental leave
- 16 weeks · all parents · 100% paid
Available at 90 days of employment. Phased return supported.
- Bereavement
- 10 days · immediate family
Extendable on request, without questions.
- Sabbatical
- 6 weeks at year 5 · 8 weeks at year 10
Encouraged to take in full. Handoff plan required.
- Home office stipend
- $2,500 / year
- Co-working
- Covered in your city, if wanted
- Professional development
- $3,000 / year
Conferences, courses, certifications. No pre-approval required under $500.
- Mental health
- Spring Health · 12 free sessions / year
Separate from medical plan. Confidential from Wavestar.
- Commuter
- Pre-tax transit · US hubs
Outside the US
UK and Singapore
- 01
United Kingdom
Private medical (Bupa) for employee and dependents. Matching SIPP contributions. 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays. UK-equivalent parental leave at 100% pay. - 02
Singapore
Private medical (AIA) for employee and dependents. CPF and supplementary retirement top-up. 20 days annual leave plus public holidays. Statutory-plus parental leave at 100% pay.
Compensation philosophy
How we set salary
- 01
Senior-staff financial-infrastructure bands
We pay in the 75th – 90th percentile of senior-staff roles at DTCC, CME, LCH, ICE, and analogous fintech infrastructure companies. Not startup scale, not FAANG scale. - 02
One band per role, one band per location
We publish the salary band inside the first recruiter conversation. We do not negotiate against competing offers — we make one strong offer inside the band and stand behind it. - 03
Annual review, written
A written salary and equity review every year, regardless of tenure. Increases are driven by scope expansion and market data, not by squeaky-wheel requests. - 04
No sign-on bonuses
We do not use sign-on bonuses to paper over below-market salaries. If the offer is right, it is right in year three as well as year one.
Detailed offer
Specific bands discussed in the first call.
We publish the philosophy here and the exact bands on the first recruiter conversation — before you commit time to a full interview loop. No surprises at offer stage.