About the Job
As a Software Engineering Intern at Lean, you'll ship real enhancements to the infrastructure our clients use to move money and access financial data. Production code, reviewed by experienced engineers, used by clients.
You'll work across several of our Java Spring Boot services, running on Kubernetes. AI-assisted development is central to how we work: Claude Code is part of our standard toolchain, we provide a generous (near-unlimited) usage quota, and we expect engineers at every level to be fluent with it, using it to move faster while staying firmly in control of what ships.
You'll have a dedicated mentor, along with your team and manager, to set and track development goals with you. The internship is designed as a path into a full-time engineering role at Lean.
About Lean
Lean is the leading financial infrastructure provider in the Middle East. We power some of the region’s largest companies with APIs that enable payments, account verification, financial data access, and other critical financial infrastructure.
What started as the region’s pioneering Open Banking platform and quickly became the de facto leader in account aggregation and payment initiation in the region is now becoming something bigger: a multi-product infrastructure company powering payments, data, and lending across MENA.
We’ve processed billions of dollars in transactions. We’re trusted by 350+ clients - from Tabby and Tas’heel to Hungerstation - and backed by General Catalyst, Sequoia, and Shorooq. Our $67.5M Series B was just the beginning. We’re expanding into new markets, opening offices, acquiring businesses, and building capabilities that didn’t exist here before.
Responsibilities
Design, develop, test, and debug software enhancements from ticket to production, with your mentor reviewing your work
Use agentic coding tools (Claude Code) to raise both the quality and velocity of your work, and help the team build good patterns for using them well
Take part in code reviews on both sides: act on feedback on your code and give considered feedback on others'
Learn the team's tools, languages, and workflows fast enough to ship something in your first few weeks
Join stand-ups, planning, and reviews, and flag early when something you own is at risk of slipping
Build a working understanding of our clients, their end-users, and the regulated environment we operate in
Get involved beyond your team: company events, demos, and cross-team work
What we're looking for
Final-year student or graduate within the last 12 months in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field
Hands-on experience using agentic coding tools as a core part of your workflow (we run on Claude Code), with the judgment to know when to trust their output and when to scrutinise it more closely
Working proficiency in at least one language such as Java, C++, Python, or similar
A grasp of the fundamentals: version control, testing, and debugging
Something you've built outside coursework: a side project, hackathon entry, open-source contribution, or previous internship.
Problem-solving you can articulate. You can walk us through how you broke a hard problem down
Clear written communication. You can explain what you built and why you built it that way
Independence, plus the judgment to ask for help rather than stay stuck
NB. While we think the above experience could be important, we’re keen to hear from people that believe they have valuable experience to bring to the role. If you identify with the team and mission, but not all of our requirements, then please still apply!!
Why Join us?
We’re building the financial infrastructure for MENA. Not as a slogan, as a fact.
Since 2019, we’ve become the first regulated Open Banking and Open Finance company operating across the UAE and Saudi Arabia. We’ve processed billions of dollars. We connect millions of accounts. We enable companies like Binance, Careem, and Etisalat to build products that were previously impossible in this region.
Our recent $67.5M Series B from General Catalyst and Sequoia isn’t just validation: it’s fuel. We’re expanding into new markets, launching new products, and setting the pace for what financial innovation looks like in MENA.
We solve hard problems. We move fast. We hold ourselves to a high standard. And we’re looking for people who’ve done this before to help us do it right.
If you’re motivated by building something that lasts, not just something that scales, Lean is where you need to be.
Not only do we offer competitive salaries, private healthcare, and flexible office hours, but we also insist that every member of the team hold a meaningful equity stake in the business to ensure long-term alignment. We'd love you to join us for this journey!
Lean is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, c

Software Engineering Intern

Job description