Junior Software Engineer (Java / Kotlin / JVM)

Junior Software Engineer (Java / Kotlin / JVM)

Contract Overview

Role: Junior Software Engineer (Java/ Kotlin/ JVM)

Location: Victoria, London

Length: 12 months

Start: ASAP

Rate: £200 per day

Status: Inside IR35

Pattern: Hybrid working

About the Role

I'm currently recruiting for a Junior Software Engineer to join a digital product team working across modern financial services technology.

This role would suit someone with a few years' commercial software engineering experience, particularly across Java, Kotlin and JVM-based backend development. The successful candidate will be working on modern applications and services that support customer-facing digital products, with a focus on clean code, APIs, service-based architecture and production-quality software delivery.

Experience within digital banking, fintech, financial services or insurance would be beneficial, although the main priority is strong backend engineering capability and a genuine interest in building reliable, scalable applications.

Client

The client is a leading global financial services organisation with a major digital technology function. The team is responsible for building and supporting customer-facing digital products used at scale, with a strong focus on modern engineering, secure platforms, API-led development and high-quality customer experiences.

Key Responsibilities

Build, maintain and improve backend services using Java, Kotlin and JVM technologies

Work across the full software delivery lifecycle, from design and development through to testing, deployment and production support

Develop and integrate APIs that support customer-facing digital products and internal platforms

Contribute to both greenfield and brownfield development projects

Participate in code reviews, technical discussions and system design conversations

Work closely with product, engineering and wider technology teams to refine requirements and deliver new features

Write clean, maintainable and well-tested code

Support live applications and help ensure performance, reliability and quality in production environments

Use modern engineering practices, including source control, CI/CD, automated testing and monitoring

Skills and Experience

A few years' commercial experience in software engineering

Strong hands-on experience with Java, Kotlin and JVM-based backend development

Understanding of service-based architecture and API-led development

Experience working with live applications and production environments

Good understanding of computer science fundamentals, data structures and software design principles

Experience with software testing, including unit testing and integration testing

Experience working with databases such as PostgreSQL, MongoDB or Redis

Familiarity with Git and source code control platforms such as GitHub, Bitbucket or GitLab

Experience working in Agile or Scrum environments

Good communication skills and the ability to work collaboratively across technical and non-technical teams

Useful Technical Experience

Kotlin

Java

JVM

Ktor or Spring

REST APIs

PostgreSQL

MongoDB

Redis

GitHub Actions or other CI/CD tools

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS, GCP or Azure

Monitoring and logging tools such as CloudWatch, Prometheus, OpenSearch or Elasticsearch

Jira, Trello or similar delivery tools

Desirable Experience

Experience or interest in AI tools and how they can support software development

Experience using tools such as GitHub Copilot, Devin or similar AI-assisted development tools

Ability to review, challenge, correct and improve AI-generated code or technical output

Experience in digital banking, fintech, financial services or insurance

Full stack experience, particularly with React or modern web technologies

Cloud deployment or container orchestration experience

A curious, adaptable and problem-solving mindset

Important Information

No visa sponsorship available. Candidates must already have the right to work in the UK.

Salt contact

Robert Sprigens, Senior Consultant -

Rates depend on experience and client requirements