Wasif Iqbal

Senior Solution Architect

VA, USA · linkedin.com/in/wasif-iqbal

Professional Overview

Technology leader with 15 years of experience in software development, specializing in enterprise-scale solutions across fintech and healthcare domains.
Principal-level full-stack engineer with expertise in backend development using C#, Java, and PHP, and front-end development using JavaScript and Angular, with strong experience across SQL and NoSQL databases.
Proven ability to architect, design, and deliver scalable, high-performance systems with end-to-end ownership of complex enterprise solutions.
12+ years of leading, mentoring, and scaling high-performing engineering teams, including distributed and offshore teams, driving timely delivery of high-quality solutions.
Deep domain expertise in payment systems, including payment gateways, payment facilitator (PayFac) platforms, EMV contact and contactless POS systems, PCI compliance, and secure transaction processing.
Hands-on experience with CI/CD pipelines, automation frameworks, cloud integration, and backend API connectivity, improving release velocity, stability, and maintainability.
Strong communicator capable of aligning technical execution with business strategy and fostering inclusive, high-performing engineering cultures.
Experienced Agile/Scrum practitioner with solution delivery expertise.
Committed to continuous learning and professional growth, consistently improving coding skills, exploring new technologies, and applying practices to elevate team and personal performance.

Work Experience

Senior Solution Architect | Blankfactor/Globant, Remote

Nov 2023 – Present

Architected and delivered cloud-native microservices applications, ensuring PCI DSS compliance throughout. Defined modern product technology strategies aligned with enterprise strategic anchors, project plan and roadmap, and KPIs from concept to production.
Led stakeholder communication across leadership, sales, and cross-functional teams. Played a driving role in defining migration strategies, scalable target architectures, and modernization roadmaps aligned with business growth objectives.
Reviewed and refined critical code paths through comprehensive merge request reviews, proactively identifying issues and risks and improving overall code quality and maintainability.
Reduced AWS infrastructure costs by 10% by downsizing EC2 instances and optimizing CPU and memory utilization, migrating workloads to ElastiCache and DynamoDB, and reducing Amazon MQ usage in collaboration with DevOps teams.
Partnered with cybersecurity teams on DevSecOps practices, embedding security into solution designs and reducing vulnerability exposure by 20%.
Partnered with SRE teams to improve platform stability and diagnostics via centralized structured logging, Datadog APM integration, and enhanced monitoring metrics for faster root-cause analysis.
Developed disaster recovery and business continuity plans that minimized downtime risk and enhanced operational resilience for critical applications.
Guided performance tuning initiatives that optimized database queries and reduced latency by 25%.
Mentored junior architects and engineers on advanced design patterns and architectural principles.

Solution Architect | Croem Inc, Remote

Apr 2012 – Nov 2023

Modernized a legacy SOAP/WebForms (.NET 3.5) payment gateway into a PCI-compliant modular-monolith platform on .NET Framework 4.5+ (MVC, Entity Framework) with a new UX, integrated with AMEX, CLAVE, Mastercard, Tecnicard, and other payment processors, powering payment acceptance across e-commerce platforms and a merchant portal.
Modernized and migrated a private card issuing platform to a new .NET Core system with web and mobile interfaces for digital wallet access, integrated with the banking core to service its products and easing onboarding through dynamic forms.
Led end-to-end project development across the full software life cycle, from architecture and coding to release management.
Collaborated with offshore developers and quality engineers, coordinating tasks and ensuring timely delivery of high-quality payment solutions.
Implemented CI/CD pipelines and Agile methodologies, reducing deployment time by 60% and improving cross-team transparency.
Introduced automated and integration testing practices that enhanced code quality and enabled stress-free production releases.
Built and scaled Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) practices to improve incident management and platform stability.
Led technical planning, architecture discussions, backlog prioritization, and sprint execution within Agile/Scrum delivery.
Conducted architecture reviews, technical mentoring, and engineering guidance for distributed development teams.

Software Developer | BroadPeak Technologies, Pakistan

Jan 2012 – Mar 2012

Supported development and maintenance of enterprise franchise software systems, ensuring platform reliability and operational stability.
Developed and launched a production order receipt feature for a large-scale franchise platform, improving operational workflow efficiency.

Software Developer | Deltasoft Technologies, Pakistan

Jul 2011 – Jan 2012

Developed a modular web-based mapping plugin, implementing the Great Map algorithm and leveraging local storage for efficient data persistence.
Collaborated closely with fellow developers to identify, troubleshoot, and resolve software bugs.

Skills

Enterprise Architecture
Payment Systems Architecture
PCI DSS, Secure coding practices
Full-stack Development
Microservices Architecture
Database Design
C# .NET Framework, PHP, Python, Java
Angular, JavaScript, jQuery
SQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis
Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC)
Prototype Development
Cross-Functional Team Leadership
Technical Roadmapping
System Resiliency Engineering (SRE)
CI/CD Pipeline Design, SonarQube
AWS and Azure Cloud Services
JIRA and Azure DevOps
GitHub and Code Reviews
Observability & Monitoring
API & Integration Architecture
Technical Mentorship

Education

Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering | NUST, Pakistan

Graduated 2011