Wasif Iqbal
Senior Solution Architect, Payments & Fintech
15 years designing secure, scalable, cloud-native platforms for banks and fintechs, and staying in the build long enough to see the architecture survive contact with production.
Who I am
I'm a Senior Solution Architect with over 15 years delivering enterprise-grade solutions across fintech and banking. I specialize in architecting scalable platforms, leading distributed engineering teams, and solving complex technology challenges from discovery through execution.
My approach is rooted in full ownership. I design architectures, stay engaged in implementation, guide technical direction, mentor engineers, and help teams deliver reliable solutions to production, not a document handed off and forgotten.
Beyond technology, I'm a builder: woodworking, 3D printing, home automation. Same instinct, different material: turning ideas into things that actually work.
Track record
Twelve engagements across four employers, most recent first. Jump to one, or scroll. The nav on the left tracks where you are.
Blankfactor / Globant
2023 – PresentPayment Gateway Consolidation & Modernization
Leading a comparative assessment of distributed payment gateway ecosystems for two PayFac clients (one running 8 gateways, another 10+). Each client's gateways are evaluated on industry fit, product features, functional and non-functional requirements, and technology and operations, then one strategic gateway is recommended per client while the rest are sunset. The consolidation itself follows an adapter-based architecture for backward compatibility, migrating merchants in waves with risks flagged and mitigated.
Banking Product Suite: Liquidity, Marketplace & Settlement
Designed the end-to-end prototype and high-level target-state architecture and data model for a bank's Liquidity Management product, then led the effort to build an MVP on the client's preferred stack (Java Spring, PostgreSQL, AWS, Angular). Also leading, from an architecture role, the design and prototyping of a Vendor Marketplace and Settlement Engine as the next MVP portals.
Payfac Platform Modernization
Modernized a payment facilitator's business processes and infrastructure with cloud-native modules, evolving legacy components into scalable, resilient services under strict PCI DSS compliance. Integrated Datadog logging, metrics, and SIEM to strengthen observability and security monitoring.
Croem Inc
2012 – 2023Gateway Platform
Modernized a legacy SOAP/WebForms (.NET 3.5) payment gateway into a modular-monolith platform on .NET Framework 4.5+ (MVC, Entity Framework) with a new UX and upgraded infrastructure, PCI DSS compliant and integrated with AMEX, CLAVE, Mastercard, Tecnicard, and other payment processors. Owned it end-to-end for over a decade in production, powering payment acceptance across eCommerce platforms and a merchant portal.
Legacy Issuing System Modernization
Modernized and migrated a private card issuing platform to a new .NET Core system, replacing a tightly coupled legacy codebase that had become difficult to maintain and scale. Added web and mobile interfaces for digital wallet access, integrated with the banking core to service its products, and eased onboarding through dynamic forms.
Customer & Subscription Management Platform
Designed a multi-tenant customer and subscription platform used across telecom, insurance, and utility: customer lifecycle, subscription orchestration, billing rules, and financial reporting.
AMS: Maritime Management System
Architected and built a comprehensive document and workflow management system for the Panama Canal Authority, replacing a legacy static, manual process. Led a team of developers and QA, managing the project end-to-end across the full SDLC.
CedulaD: National Digital Wallet (COVID Response)
Architected and built CedulaD, a digital wallet issuing monthly government allowances to citizens of Panama in response to COVID-19, delivered in a 2–3 month build cycle. Integrated with stores and supermarkets for grocery and medicine purchases, later expanded to education and medical sectors. Led a team of developers and QA, managing the full SDLC from requirements through release.
POS, Link to Pay, Click to Pay & Social Pay
Built and maintained a suite of independent payment channels (POS, Link to Pay, Click to Pay, and Social Pay) integrated with the core payment gateway, letting merchants pick the channel that fit their needs. Owned development, support, and ongoing improvement across the full SDLC.
eCommerce Billing Portal: Telco, Insurance & Utility
Built a white-label eCommerce billing portal enabling prepaid and postpaid bill payment across telecom, insurance, and utility industries.
BroadPeak Technologies
Jan 2012 – Mar 2012Edible Arrangements: Franchise Order Email Receipt
Maintained Edible Arrangements' enterprise franchise software and partnered with the US Franchise team to design, build, and launch an automated order email receipt feature.
Deltasoft Technologies
Jul 2011 – Jan 2012Web-Based Mapping Plugin
Built a modular, web-based mapping plugin using the Great Map algorithm and local storage for data persistence, then integrated it into the company's customer management portal.
Where I help
Six ways engagements usually start, most turn into more than one.
Solution Architecture
Design and evolve scalable, maintainable systems from the ground up, or stabilize a complex legacy platform. Target architectures and modernization roadmaps, written to be implemented, not admired.
Payment Systems & Fintech
Deep expertise across gateways, payment facilitators, acquiring and issuing. Building and scaling PCI-compliant systems that process high-volume transactions securely and reliably.
Learn more about Payment Systems & FintechEngineering Leadership & Mentorship
Hands-on leadership for technical teams: execution, backlog prioritization, architecture reviews, and code quality, building engineering cultures that consistently deliver.
Cloud Migration & Modernization
Modernize legacy platforms into cloud-native architectures on AWS and Azure. System decomposition, microservices adoption, and DevOps enablement for long-term stability.
DevSecOps & Observability
Embed security and operational excellence into every layer of delivery. CI/CD pipelines, automated quality gates, and observability that enables secure, fast releases.
AI Engineering & Agent Systems
Design and operate agentic AI systems: multi-agent orchestration and GenAI applications, backed by evaluation pipelines. Same reliability bar as payment infrastructure, no looser standard for AI.
How do you approach legacy system modernization without downtime?
The system gets decomposed and migrated in stages, not replaced in one cutover. That means identifying the components with the least coupling first, standing up the new architecture alongside the old one, and routing traffic incrementally while both versions run in parallel long enough to verify behavior under real load. Cloud migration and modernization work follows the same pattern whether the target is AWS or Azure: infrastructure optimization and micro-services adoption happen in sequence, verified at each step, so the system stays operational for users the entire time.
What does engineering leadership look like in a consulting engagement?
It's hands-on, not advisory-only: driving backlog prioritization, running architecture reviews, and setting the code quality bar the team holds itself to. Those are the same responsibilities a full-time engineering leader carries, scoped to the engagement. The goal is an engineering culture that keeps delivering after the engagement ends, not a set of recommendations that depend on the consultant staying in the room.
How I actually work
Diagrams aren't decoration here: they're the first artifact I hand an engineering team, and often the most honest description of the problem. Four patterns from recent work.
What I build with
Have an architecture problem worth solving properly?
Open to Principal Architect roles, leadership positions, and consulting engagements. If it's worth building, I want to hear about it.
Based in Virginia. Available for remote and hybrid engagements. Response time is typically 24–48 hours.