IBM Champion Spotlight: Fadi Hatim Mahmoud
Pioneering Open Banking Innovation in Saudi Arabia
This month, we proudly feature Fadi Hatim Mahmoud, Head of IT Application Development at Bank Albilad and a dedicated IBM Champion, who stands as one of the key brains behind the first certified Open Banking platform in Saudi Arabia. As the technical leader of this transformative initiative, showcased in a joint case study between Bank Albilad and IBM, Fadi helped achieve compliance with the Saudi Central Bank's (SAMA) open banking framework, setting new standards for the entire financial sector.
The Integration Visionary
IBM Cloud Pak for Integration (CP4I), specifically IBM API Connect, forms the technical bedrock of Fadi's open banking strategy at Bank Albilad. He championed the platform as the cornerstone of the bank's open banking initiative. "API Connect has helped us create, manage, secure, and efficiently socialize our APIs to the market," Fadi elaborates, "It’s a comprehensive platform that lets us rapidly connect applications across different interfaces and protocols, while securely exposing integration services as APIs. Additionally, CP4I enabled us to implement the event-driven architecture that keeps our banking services synchronized, agile, and fully aligned with market demands.”
A Champion's Drive for Collective Growth
Fadi's motivation for giving back stems from his belief in shared progress. "My drive to contribute comes from wanting to share knowledge and help others learn from my experiences while learning from them in return," he explains. This philosophy made him a natural fit for the IBM Champions program, where he actively shares his field expertise through speaking engagements, helping other financial institutions navigate their digital transformation journeys.
Engineering a National Milestone
Fadi's most significant achievement, leading the implementation of Saudi Arabia's first certified open banking platform, exemplifies his technical and leadership excellence. When the Saudi Central Bank mandated strict deadlines for open banking compliance, Fadi and his team leveraged IBM API Connect to not only meet but exceed requirements, achieving FAPI (Financial-grade API) certification ahead of schedule. As documented in IBM's case study, the bank's success was driven by API Connect's enterprise-scale capabilities, which provided built-in security policies, low-code acceleration, and the flexibility to adapt to KSA's specific regulatory standards, making Bank Albilad a benchmark for innovation in the region.
Beyond Technology
If not in technology, Fadi would pursue a career as a pilot, drawn to the precision, systematic planning, and clear navigation required in both aviation and IT architecture. His advice to aspiring IBM Champions reflects his own journey: "I advise everyone to join this exceptional program, it enhances professional visibility, provides direct access to IBM product teams, and creates incredible opportunities for global networking and learning from industry experts.”
Lightning Round
- What would be your superpower and why? Empathy 💙 because it allows me to build trust with my team and peers, and boosts engagement and innovation.
- Ice cream or cake? Cake 🎂
- Cats or dogs? Cats 🐱
- Summer or winter? Summer ☀️
- Morning or evening? Evening 🌙
- eBook or paper book? eBook 📱
- TV shows or movies? Movies 🎬
- A night out or a night in? Night out 🌃
- Cannonball into the pool or dip a toe in first? Cannonball into the pool 💦
- Drive or fly? Fly ✈️
Want to hear more about Fadi’s journey as an IBM Champion? Connect with him on LinkedIn!
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