Founding Partnerships Lead (NYC)

Founding Partnerships/BD Lead

📍 NYC (Hybrid) | Early-Stage Fintech | Credit Union / Bank Focus | Affiliate Marketing

🎯 The Role

We’re looking for a Founding Partnerships Lead to help build Debbie’s growth and distribution engine from the ground up.

This role sits at the intersection ofpartnerships, affiliate marketing, business development, and GTM strategy. You’ll identify and negotiate strategic partnerships, structure economics, source distribution opportunities, and help shape how Debbie scales with financial institutions and ecosystem partners.

This is not a “run the playbook” role — you’ll help write it. You’ll work directly with the founders to define Debbie’s partnership strategy acrossbanks, credit unions, fintechs, affiliate channels, and distribution partners.

If you’ve worked in fintech partnerships, affiliate marketing, revenue partnerships, or financial infrastructure — and want meaningful ownership at an early-stage company — this role is for you.

🏅Who we are:

Debbie is the first rewards platform for financial wellness, where users can earn cashback for paying off debt and saving. We partner with banks to help them acquire new young consumers as well as engage their existing members. As featured inForbes,American Banker,CNN and more.

• We are a seed-stage company and have raised $7.8m from over 10 reputable VCs

• We have close to 20 live partners and are growing quickly to onboard more

• A team of 12 hustlers with deep industry experience

• LinkedIn |Instagram |X |TikTok

🧠 What We’re Looking For

• Minimum 3+ years of experience in partnerships, business development, affiliate marketing, or strategic sales, ideally within:

  • Fintech

  • Banking / credit unions

  • Affiliate or performance marketing

  • Financial infrastructure / embedded finance

  Strong ability to:

  • Source and evaluate strategic partnerships

  • Negotiate partnership economics and distribution agreements

  • Manage relationship-driven sales cycles

  • Think analytically about CAC, conversion funnels, incentives, and ROI

  • Operate independently in ambiguous early-stage environments

  Bonus points for experience with:

  • Affiliate / CPA-based partnerships

  • FI partnerships or channel partnerships

  • Marketplace or two-sided growth models

  • Performance marketing or lead-gen ecosystems

🛠️ Responsibilities

• Own Debbie’s partnership pipeline from sourcing → negotiation → launch

• Identify and build relationships with:

  • Banks & credit unions

  • Affiliate and lead-gen partners

  • Fintech ecosystem partners

  • Distribution and channel partners

• Structure and negotiate partnership economics, incentives, and GTM agreements

• Collaborate directly with founders on:

  • Partnership strategy

  • Pricing and monetization

  • GTM experimentation

  • Channel expansion opportunities

• Support select enterprise sales conversations with financial institutions

• Help refine:

  • Partner pitch materials

  • Revenue models and ROI analyses

  • Case studies and growth data

• Represent Debbie at fintech, banking, and affiliate industry events

🚀 What We’re Offering

• Base salary: $140K–$200K (based on experience)

• Uncapped commission, currently at 5-8% deal size ($200K-$350K OTE)

• Meaningful equity in a high-growth fintech
  

• Bonus insane perk:New employees are exempt from NYC State and local income tax through the STARTUP-NY program.

• Benefits: 100% covered health, dental, and vision + 401k benefits + wellness stipend

• Direct access to founders and company strategy

• Clear path to C-suite

• Hybrid NYC work environment

• High autonomy, flexible schedule